David Lammy has defended plans to limit jury trials to the most serious offences such as rape and murder.
The Justice Secretary will lay out reforms later today to overhaul the system in order to tackle what he dubbed the “courts emergency.”
Under the new plans, leaked last week, Mr Lammy proposed a new tier of judge-only courts to hear cases likely to attract sentences of up to five years, similar to the Canadian system.
Only defendants accused of crimes likely to receive sentences of more than five years would be entitled to have their case heard before a jury.
This includes crimes such as murder, rape, other serious sexual offences, terrorism, manslaughter, grievous bodily harm and possession of firearms.
Anyone charged with so-called “either way” offences, where the accused can pick either a magistrates or jury trial, would be stripped of their right to elect trial by jury and the decision would instead be taken by judges.
This includes burglary, affray, fraud, some sexual crimes and criminal damage up to £10,000.
The move to give victims the “swift justice they deserve” comes amid a record-high backlog of crown court cases totalling more than 78,000, and trials listed as far as 2030.
Ministers have warned the backlog could rise to 100,000 by 2028 if nothing is done, with a growing number of victims giving up on seeking justice because of the lengthy delays.
Mr Lammy wrote in The Telegraph: “Today I am calling time on the courts emergency that has left victims of the most serious crimes waiting years for justice and pushed the justice system to the brink of collapse. For many victims, justice delayed is often justice denied.
“Some give up on the process, while others have no confidence justice will be served if they report a crime, and perpetrators never held to account.
“This simply cannot go on, we must be bold. I will set out a fast and fair justice plan that gives victims and survivors the swift justice they deserve.”
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Prominent Labour backbencher issues dire warning to party – ‘Directionless and hollowed out’
A prominent left-wing Labour backbencher has warned the party “looks directionless and hollowed out” as he accused the party of laying the path for Nigel Farage to become Prime Minister.
Writing in The New Statesman, Norwich South MP Clive Lewis said: ” The current Labour leadership is, knowingly or not, preparing the ground for a Reform Government, not through malice, but because its strategy reinforces the vulnerabilities authoritarian movements exploit.
“A party that once embraced debate now suspends first and asks questions never. Members purged on flimsy grounds. MPs briefed against for insufficient enthusiasm. Activists silenced.
“You can draw a line from that to a policing culture where a grandmother in a Palestine Action T-shirt finds herself arrested. A political machine afraid of dissent produces a state afraid of dissent.”
David Lammy blasts OBR report as ‘shocking and surprising;
David Lammy has slammed the report’s finding
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PA
Justice Secretary David Lammy said it was “shocking and surprising” that the Office for Budget Responsibility’s report revealed last week’s Budget leak was not the first time its sensitive forecasts had been accessed early.
The forecast for the last spring statement in March was also “accessed prematurely” on one occasion, the fiscal watchdog said.
Mr Lammy said it was important to support the OBR after its chairman Richard Hughes resigned over the early publication of forecasts.
Mr Lammy told Times Radio: “Clearly, what was set out yesterday was incredibly serious and I think it was shocking and surprising that, in fact, this wasn’t the first time it had happened.
“It had indeed happened before in March and I think it’s for that reason that he has decided to stand down, but I thank him for all that he has done, and I absolutely think it’s important that we continue to support the OBR as they reform in this particular area.”
Mel Stride says Kemi Badenoch was ‘on fire’ on Budget Day
Sir Mel Stride lavished praise on Tory leader Kemi Badenoch as she said the Conservative leader was “on fire” on Budget Day.
He told GB News Kemi has a “good understanding of economics”, adding: “the more she got into it and the more she heard what Reeves was saying the more nimble she became.
“She’s going from strength to strength.”
Mel Stride says Rachel Reeves ‘must resign’
Sir Mel Stride on GB News this morning
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GB News
Sir Mel Stride has called on Rachel Reeves to resign, suggesting the Chancellor’s position had become “untenable.”
The Shadow Chancellor told GB News: “The real story here not to get distracted by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) is of course the Chancellor called that press conference on November 4 and told the public there was a huge black hole in the public finances.
“The previous forecast by the OBR on October 31 actually showed she was in surplus. It was a complete misrepresentation of the true position.”
Yvette Cooper to pledge global action to end online abuse of women and girls
Yvette Cooper is set to announce new British efforts to deal with online abuse as she said abuse of women and girls is “crossing borders at unprecedented scale and speed.”
The Foreign Secretary is expected to announce a £4.85million package from the UK’s integrated security fund to support, among other things, the expansion of an online platform that helps websites block the non-consensual sharing of intimate images.
Ms Cooper will say: “Numbers alone are inadequate but they should shock us nonetheless.
“One in every three women and girls worldwide will experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime, 140 women and girls killed every day by a partner or close relative.”
She will add: “So I pledge to go all in as Foreign Secretary, working to ensure that women and girls around the world can thrive and flourish, free from violence and free from fear.”
RECAP: Keir Starmer admits China is a ‘national security threat’ to Britain
The Prime Minister said it would be “a dereliction of duty” not to engage with China | REUTERS
Sir Keir Starmer has acknowledged that China represents a “national security threat” to Britain, despite the Government’s efforts to strengthen ties with Beijing.
At the Lady Mayor’s Banquet in Guildhall on Monday, the Prime Minister said it would be “a dereliction of duty” not to engage with China, the world’s second-largest economy.
Sir Keir said that establishing a cautious relationship with the East Asian country would give Britain a boost on the world stage.
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