Source · Select Committees · Justice Committee
Recommendation 17
17
Deferred
Produce a detailed long-term plan to increase judicial capacity in the Crown Court.
Recommendation
We share the view of the judiciary and the MoJ that judicial capacity is, at present, the most pressing constraint in the courts system. We welcome the Government’s plans to recruit more judges. The Government should learn the lesson from past decisions that have led to a reduction in judicial capacity. Increasing the number of judges is a difficult task which requires a long-term approach and a sustained focus. The MoJ should produce a detailed plan on how it intends to increase the number of judges in the Crown Court in the long-term. (Paragraph 59) Court Capacity 45 Physical capacity in the Crown Court
Government response summary AI-generated
The government did not provide a detailed plan to increase the number of judges in the Crown Court. Instead, it explained how increasing magistrates' court sentencing powers aims to reduce the Crown Court backlog and free up sitting days, and mentioned monitoring the impact of this policy.
Summary of the government's response below — read the verbatim text to verify.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government · verbatim extract
Deferred
MoJ has a shared objective with the judiciary and the Judicial Appointments Commission to ensure that judicial recruitment is planned in a way that meets both long-term and more immediate needs. This is why a 5-year rolling recruitment programme has been agreed to recruit to those judicial offices where there is the greatest need for regular (annual to biennial) recruitment. As explained in the response to Recommendation (9), every effort is being made to maximise Circuit Judge and Recorder capacity. Long-term resourcing plans will benefit from action to make judicial office attractive through providing efficient administrative support and a well-maintained court and tribunal estate. That is why £1.3bn has been invested in HMCTS reform on the large-scale modernisation of our processes, digital systems and our buildings, which includes greater use of case officers ensuring that judges can spend their time on judge level activity; and over £280m over the last two years has been invested in maintenance of our estate. A thriving legal sector is also key to ensuring future judicial resourcing needs can be met. The Government’s proposals, currently under consultation, to reform the criminal legal aid system, by providing a 15% uplift for most schemes and longer term investment, including reform of the Litigators’ Graduated Fee Scheme (LGFS), will ensure continued high standards of representation before our courts, and sustainable cWe will also support the next generation of criminal lawyers by making up to £2.5 million available for training grants for solicitors. The Government is also looking at increasing the opportunities for CILEX professionals across the justice system – including making it easier for them to become duty solicitors to increase the sustainability and stability of the provider base. This could provide a further pipeline into the judiciary. The Criminal Courts—Physical Capacity in the Crown Court
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