Key facts
- The Crown court backlog is expected to take up to a decade to significantly improve.
- The number of outstanding cases is projected to increase to 100,000 within a year.
- Proposed reforms include introducing judge-only trials for offenses carrying sentences of less than three years.
- These reforms aim to reduce the number of jury trials by half.
- Justice Minister Sarah Sackman acknowledged that the situation will worsen before it improves.
- Lord Chancellor David Lammy stated that the backlog could be cleared within a decade with these reforms.
Ministers have admitted that the backlog of cases in England and Wales' Crown courts will take 'the best part of a decade' to improve, with projections indicating the number of outstanding cases could rise to 100,000 within a year before beginning to decrease. Justice minister Sarah Sackman stated that the situation will likely worsen before it improves, but insisted that government plans, including the introduction of judge-only trials for offenses carrying sentences of less than three years, are designed to tackle the crisis.
These proposed reforms, which aim to halve the number of jury trials from 15,000 annually, have faced significant opposition from some Labour backbenchers and the legal profession. MP Karl Turner has vowed to vote against the measures, arguing they weaken fundamental jury trial rights without clear evidence linking their removal to the backlog's cause. Lord Chancellor David Lammy, however, has claimed that slashing jury trials could clear the nearly 80,000-case backlog within a decade, drawing parallels to Canada's system where defendants often opt for single-judge trials.
Ministers are aiming for Royal Assent on the Courts Bill by the end of the year, with the reforms expected to be implemented by 2028. Sackman acknowledged the difficulty for victims currently in the system but expressed confidence that the government is addressing the problem. Lammy indicated an expectation for the backlog to be visibly reducing by 2029.