Latest news with #LevesonReview
The Independent
26-06-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Crown court backlog of cases passes 75,000 for first time
The crown court backlog in England and Wales has risen to a new record high, passing 75,000 cases for the first time. Data published on Thursday shows the open caseload stood at 76,957 at the end of March this year, up from 74,592 at the end of December 2024. This is also up 11% from 69,021 a year earlier, according to Ministry of Justice figures. Some 18,093 cases had been open for at least a year at the end of March, up from 16,184 a year earlier and the highest since current data began. Open caseload refers to the number of outstanding cases. Responding to the figures, courts and legal services minister Sarah Sackman KC said the current rate of increase could see the backlog hit 100,000 before 2028. This is earlier than the minister's previous warning that it could hit the milestone by the end of 2029. Ms Sackman said: 'Despite the hard work of people across the criminal justice system the situation in our crown court is reaching breaking point. 'We inherited a courts crisis with an ever-growing backlog which, at its current rate of increase, will hit 100,000 before 2028. 'It is simply unacceptable that any victim has to wait years to see justice done and it is clear the status quo is not working. 'Only radical reform can deliver swifter justice for victims and that is why we asked Sir Brian Leveson to make recommendations for once-in-a-generation change, to be published in the coming weeks.' The Leveson review is expected to give recommendations on how to overhaul the court system. The Government has already agreed to implement a raft of reforms following an independent sentencing review by former justice secretary David Gauke to tackle jail overcrowding. But Mary Prior KC, chairwoman of the Criminal Bar Association, said ministers must open up closed crown court rooms to allow delayed cases to be heard, adding: 'Whatever the radical reforms suggested in ongoing reviews, implementation will take at least another year.' She said: 'The traumatised people in the long queue for justice may well have walked away by then, unheard and unseen. 'Victims of serious crimes want their cases dealt with in months, not years. 'People falsely accused of crimes want the same. Both want the nightmare to end.' In March, Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced a record level of sitting days for crown court judges to tackle delays but admitted the 'sad reality' is the backlog of cases will 'still go up'. The Lord Chancellor said judges will sit collectively for 110,000 days in the next financial year – 4,000 more than allocated for the previous period.
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Crown court backlog of cases passes 75,000 for first time
The crown court backlog in England and Wales has risen to a new record high, passing 75,000 cases for the first time. Data published on Thursday shows the open caseload stood at 76,957 at the end of March this year, up from 74,592 at the end of December 2024. This is also up 11% from 69,021 a year earlier, according to Ministry of Justice figures. Some 18,093 cases had been open for at least a year at the end of March, up from 16,184 a year earlier and the highest since current data began. Responding to the figures, courts and legal services minister Sarah Sackman KC said the current rate of increase could see the backlog hit 100,000 before 2028. This is earlier than the minister's previous warning that it could hit the milestone by the end of 2029. Ms Sackman said: 'Despite the hard work of people across the criminal justice system the situation in our crown court is reaching breaking point. 'We inherited a courts crisis with an ever-growing backlog which, at its current rate of increase, will hit 100,000 before 2028. 'It is simply unacceptable that any victim has to wait years to see justice done and it is clear the status quo is not working. 'Only radical reform can deliver swifter justice for victims and that is why we asked Sir Brian Leveson to make recommendations for once-in-a-generation change, to be published in the coming weeks.' The Leveson review is expected to give recommendations on how to overhaul the court system. The Government has already agreed to implement a raft of reforms following an independent sentencing review by former justice secretary David Gauke to tackle jail overcrowding. But Mary Prior KC, chairwoman of the Criminal Bar Association, said ministers must open up closed crown court rooms to allow delayed cases to be heard, adding: 'Whatever the radical reforms suggested in ongoing reviews, implementation will take at least another year.' She said: 'The traumatised people in the long queue for justice may well have walked away by then, unheard and unseen. 'Victims of serious crimes want their cases dealt with in months, not years. 'People falsely accused of crimes want the same. Both want the nightmare to end.' In March, Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced a record level of sitting days for crown court judges to tackle delays but admitted the 'sad reality' is the backlog of cases will 'still go up'. The Lord Chancellor said judges will sit collectively for 110,000 days in the next financial year – 4,000 more than allocated for the previous period.
The Independent
14-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Prisons set to run out of spaces again within a year despite early release scheme, MPs warn
Overcrowded prisons will face 'total gridlock in a matter of months' and run out of space in 2026 despite emergency measures to release prisoners early, MPs have warned. A damning report from the Public Accounts Committee found a 'system in crisis' was leaving many prisoners living in 'inhumane conditions', adding the previous government's plans to create 20,000 more prison places by the mid 2020s were 'completely unrealistic'. Thousands of outstanding spaces are expected to be delivered five years late with costs spiralling to £4.2 billion – 80 per cent more than originally planned. MPs also said the HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) is operating "hand to mouth", which is detrimental to rehabilitation efforts to cut reoffending. Chairman of the committee Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown said: "Lives are being put at increasing risk by the government's historic failures to increase capacity. 'Despite the recent emergency release of thousands of prisoners, the system still faces total gridlock in a matter of months." He added that the inquiry found severely overcrowded prisons are in danger of becoming "pressure cookers" and that vital rehabilitative work is being sidelined as staff are forced to focus on controlling unsafe environments. "Many prisoners themselves are living in simply inhumane conditions, with their health needs often overlooked,' Sir Geoffrey said. "It is now for the government to act on the recommendations in our report if disaster is to be averted.' The report said the adult male prison estate was at 98 to 99.7 per cent occupancy between October 2022 and August 2024, and remains "alarmingly full". It found a quarter of prisons are doubled up in cells meant for one person and overcrowding is linked to higher rates of violence and self-harm which "increased significantly" in the year to September 2024. The committee said fights between prisoners were up 14 per cent and attacks on staff jumped by 19 per cent in that period. The committee also warned HMPPS was "entirely reliant" on uncertain future measures which it hopes will come from the independent sentencing review, led by David Gauke, which is expected to be published in the spring. The MPs made similar findings of the approach taken in tackling the courts backlog earlier this month, warning the Ministry of Justice is "over-reliant" on the upcoming findings from the Leveson Review also expected in late spring. Sir Geoffrey added: "As with our recent inquiry into court backlogs, we find a department grappling with the fallout of problems it should have predicted while awaiting the judgment of an external review before taking any truly radical corrective action." The report said one of reasons for the shortfall of new places was that the MoJ and HMPPS assumed they could gain planning permission for new prisons in 26 weeks. Plans to deliver the remaining 14,000 places by 2031 are "still fraught with risk and uncertainty", the committee warned. They also said current maintenance funding of £520 million was a fraction of the £2.8 billion needed to bring the prison estate into fair condition. Reacting to the report, prison experts warned the government cannot build its way out of the crisis. Andrea Coomber KC from the Howard League for Penal Reform said: 'It is no coincidence that violence and self-harm are at endemic levels. "The Government has acknowledged that it cannot build our way out of this crisis. Ultimately, they must reduce demand on a system that has been asked to do too much, with too little, for too long." She added that billions of pounds earmarked for building new prisons would be better spent on securing an "effective and responsive" probation service, working to cut crime in the community. Richard Garside, director of the Centre for Crime and Justice Studies, said successive governments have tried – and failed – to build their way out of the prison capacity crisis. 'Rather than repeating all the mistakes of the past, the government should develop a long-term plan to contain and then reduce the prison population,' he added. 'This would allow it to close the gap between the money allocated and the costs of building, running and maintaining prisons.' Minister for Prisons, Probation and Reducing Reoffending, Lord Timpson said: 'This report exposes the catalogue of failures we inherited which almost collapsed our entire prison system. This not only risked public safety but added billions in extra costs to taxpayers. 'We have already taken immediate action to end the overcrowding chaos engulfing our jails and are now delivering on our Plan for Change to ensure prisons work, cut crime and make streets safer. 'This includes delivering 14,000 new, modern prison places by 2031 and reviewing sentencing so we never run out of space again. We'll carefully consider the Committee's recommendations as part of this work.'
The Independent
05-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Justice Secretary says courts backlog will rise despite record level of sittings
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has said that, despite announcing a record level of sitting days for crown court judges to tackle delays, the 'sad reality' is the backlog of cases will 'still go up'. The Lord Chancellor said on Wednesday that judges will sit collectively for 110,000 days in the next financial year – 4,000 more than allocated for the previous period – to help victims see justice done faster. The move comes after the Victims Commissioner published a report on Tuesday warning that the record levels of crown court delays are deepening the trauma of victims and making many feel justice is 'out of reach'. The rising backlog in England and Wales has almost doubled in five years to 73,105 at the end of September last year. Ms Mahmood told the Commons that some victims will not have their cases heard until 2028, as she said the extra sitting days will be funded by a total budget of £2.5 billion allocated for courts and tribunals in the next financial year. It comes as a report from the Public Accounts Committee published on Wednesday raised concerns that ministers have 'simply accepted' the record-high crown court backlog will continue to grow and they will wait for the results of the Leveson Review before planning changes to tackle it. The major review, led by Sir Brian Leveson, is expected to report on reforms to the courts system in the spring. Announcing the extra sitting days, Ms Mahmood described it as a 'critical first step' but said there is more that 'we must' do. Asked how long it will take to clear the courts backlog, she told Times Radio: 'We will be making progress, but the sad reality is that, even sitting to this unprecedented amount, the backlog will still go up. 'Because the demand of cases coming into the system is very, very large, and that's why I announced some weeks ago that Brian Leveson will be carrying out a crown courts review for us to look at once-in-a-generation reform of the sorts of cases that go into our crown courts, so that we can actually bear down on that backlog in the longer term.' Changes on which cases go to jury trials as crown courts buckle under the 'sheer number of cases' coming in will be among the measures being considered in the Leveson Review, Ms Mahmood told LBC. 'He will also be considering whether we should do more with our magistrates' courts and the sorts of cases that they can hear, or whether there is a case for a court that sits between the magistrates and the crown,' she said. But the Justice Secretary has faced calls to increase the sitting days to what the Lady Chief Justice has said should be a maximum of 113,000 days. Law Society of England and Wales president Richard Atkinson said the number is 'still not at the maximum the Lady Chief Justice has said is possible to achieve', while chairwoman of the Criminal Bar Association, Mary Prior KC, called for the number to be uncapped for at least the next five years. Speaking in the Commons, shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said: 'What we have learnt again today is that the Justice Secretary is still turning down available sitting days, and, astonishingly, she has conceded that the court backlog will keep on rising. 'This is simply not acceptable. 'We need to be maximising court capacity, taking full advantage of all available days, and probing the judiciary for options to create more capacity.' But Ms Mahmood told the House she is 'confident' that 110,000 days represents system capacity, when considering availability of lawyers, prosecutors and legal aid as well as judges, and 'that is what is being delivered'. The extra sitting days will also apply to immigration and asylum tribunal cases, taking them to near maximum capacity, to help speed up asylum claims, the Ministry of Justice said. The Government confirmed funding for repairs and maintenance across the courts and tribunal estate is to rise from £120 million last year to £148.5 million this year. Repairs will include remedial works for crumbling reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) at Harrow Crown Court, which has been closed since August 2023, and fixing leaking roofs and out-of-order lifts. Funding will also be given to new courts being built, such as a 30-hearing room tribunal centre at Newgate Street in London, and a county and family court in Reading. But Mr Atkinson added: 'The funding increase for court maintenance is only a small fraction of the £1.3 billion repairs backlog for courts and tribunals reported by the National Audit Office.' The announcement came as the Victims Commissioner for England and Wales, Baroness Newlove, called for the Government to provide emergency cash for victim support services during this 'time of crisis', and branded real-term cuts to victim support as 'ill-advised' and 'short-sighted'. Ms Mahmood said 'obviously not' when asked by Times Radio if she is comfortable with cutting funding for frontline victim support services by 4% in 2025, but added: 'I've inherited a shocking situation where cases have been waiting for years to be heard and, as you say, are regularly cancelled.' She also told the BBC there will be 'more difficult choices to come' when asked if the Ministry of Justice will have to slash spending amid reports of billions of extra cuts earmarked by the Treasury. 'Every part of Government has to play its part in making sure that the nation's books are balanced and that we are living within our means,' she told BBC Breakfast. 'That means… there have already been difficult choices, and all Government departments have had to play their part in that. There will be more difficult choices to come.'
The Independent
05-03-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
Justice Secretary says backlog will go up despite record court sitting days
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has said that despite announcing a record level of sitting days for crown court judges to tackle delays, the 'sad reality' is the backlog of cases will 'still go up'. The Lord Chancellor said on Wednesday that judges will sit collectively for 110,000 days in the next financial year, 4,000 more than allocated for the previous period, to help victims see justice done faster. The move comes as the Victims Commissioner published a report on Tuesday warning that the record levels of crown court delays are deepening the trauma of victims and making many feel justice is 'out of reach'. The rising backlog in England and Wales has almost doubled in five years to 73,105 at the end of September last year. Meanwhile, a report from the Public Accounts Committee published on Wednesday raised concerns ministers had 'simply accepted' the record-high crown court backlog will continue to grow and they will wait for the results of the Leveson Review before planning changes to tackle it. The major review led by Sir Brian Leveson is expected to report on reforms to the court system in the spring. Announcing the extra sitting days Ms Mahmood described it as a 'critical first step' but there is more that 'we must' do. Asked about how long it will take to clear the courts backlog, she told Times Radio: 'We will be making progress. 'But the sad reality is that even sitting to this unprecedented amount, the backlog will still go up. 'Because the demand of cases coming into the system is very, very large, and that's why I announced some weeks ago that Brian Leveson will be carrying out a crown courts review for us to look at once-in-a-generation reform of the sorts of cases that go into our crown courts, so that we can actually bear down on that backlog in the longer term.' Changes on which cases go to jury trials as crown courts buckle under the 'sheer number of cases' coming in will be among the measures being considered in the Leveson Review, she told LBC. 'He will also be considering whether we should do more with our magistrates' courts and the sorts of cases that they can hear, or whether there is a case for a court that sits between the magistrates and the crown,' she said. The extra sitting days will also apply to immigration and asylum tribunal cases, bringing them to near maximum capacity, to help speed up asylum claims, the Ministry of Justice said. The Government confirmed funding for repairs and maintenance across the courts and tribunal estate is to rise from £120 million last year to £148.5 million this year. Repairs will include remedial works for crumbling reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) at Harrow Crown Court, which has been closed since August 2023, and fixing leaking roofs and out-of-order lifts. Funding will also be given to new courts being built, such as a 30-hearing room tribunal centre at Newgate Street in London, and a county and family court in Reading. The announcement comes as the Victims Commissioner for England and Wales, Baroness Newlove, called for the Government to provide emergency cash for victim support services during this 'time of crisis', and branded real-term cuts to victim support as 'ill-advised' and 'short-sighted'. Ms Mahmood said she was 'obviously not comfortable' when asked by Times Radio if she was comfortable with cutting funding for frontline victim support services by 4% in 2025, adding: 'I've inherited a shocking situation where cases have been waiting for years to be heard and, as you say, are regularly cancelled.' She also told the BBC there would be 'more difficult choices to come' when asked if the Ministry of Justice would have to slash spending amid reports of billions of extra cuts earmarked by the Treasury. 'Every part of government has to play its part in making sure that the nation's books are balanced and that we are living within our means,' the Justice Secretary told BBC Breakfast. 'That means … there have already been difficult choices, and all Government departments have had to play their part in that. There will be more difficult choices to come.' Reacting to the extra sitting days, Law Society of England and Wales president Richard Atkinson said they were welcome steps. He added: 'But sitting days are still not at the maximum the Lady Chief Justice has said is possible to achieve. 'While the funding increase for court maintenance is only a small fraction of the £1.3 billion repairs backlog for courts and tribunals reported by the National Audit Office.' The chairwoman of the Criminal Bar Association, Mary Prior KC, also urged the Government to make a difference now by allowing crown courts to sit at the maximum capacity available of 113,000 days, adding: 'Each and every day that a courtroom is left closed is a day when justice is delayed.'
