Source · Select Committees · Justice Committee
Sixth report - Court capacity
Justice Committee
HC 69
Published 27 April 2022
Recommendations
7
Accepted
Require Ministry of Justice to ring-fence funding for data improvement and publish timetable.
Recommendation
The Ministry of Justice must ensure that it ring-fences funding from Spending Review 2021 to expedite work to deliver on its commitments to improve data, as Court Capacity 43 well as allocating funding for this work as part of Spending …
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Government Response Summary
The government committed an extra £477 million to the Criminal Justice System to reduce the Crown Court backlog to 53,000 cases by March 2025, and continues to work on the CJS Delivery Data Dashboard to improve transparency and timeliness across the system.
Ministry of Justice
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24
Accepted
Streamline magistrates' recruitment process to ensure applications are processed within six months.
Recommendation
The Committee welcomes the Government’s launch of a major campaign to recruit magistrates. The Government should also consider whether it would be possible, as the Committee recommended in 2016, to streamline the recruitment process, so that applications are processed within …
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Government Response Summary
The government accepted the recommendation, stating that a key objective of its £1 million investment in magistrate recruitment is to streamline the process, and a revised, online recruitment process has been introduced to reduce application times.
Ministry of Justice
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25
Accepted
Conduct 12-month review of increased magistrates' sentencing power and Crown Court workload impact.
Recommendation
The Committee supports the decision to increase the sentencing power of magistrates. The Government should conduct a review of the change 12 months after it has come into force and evaluate its effect on the workload of the Crown Court. …
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Government Response Summary
The government accepted the recommendation, stating that to understand the impact of increased magistrates' sentencing powers on the Crown Court, they are actively monitoring and assessing relevant court and prison data on a monthly basis.
Ministry of Justice
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27
Accepted
Para 95
Family justice requires urgent cross-government attention to improve support for separating couples.
Recommendation
The Committee welcomes the Deputy Prime Minister’s willingness to consider bold solutions in family justice. It is an area of the justice system that needs the Government’s full attention. Just as with the criminal justice system, it is vital that …
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Government Response Summary
The government accepted the recommendation, confirming that Ministers for Family Justice and Children and Families jointly chair the Family Justice Board to ensure cross-system reforms, and highlighted an £82 million investment for a network of Family Hubs in 75 local authorities to integrate family services and relationship support.
Ministry of Justice
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29
Accepted
Mediation Voucher Scheme shows promise but requires further scaling to meet Family Court demand.
Recommendation
The Government’s Mediation Voucher Scheme is a welcome development for the capacity of the Family Court. The initial results, with 400 vouchers being used and with 77 percent of cases reaching full or partial agreements, are promising. While we recognise …
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Government Response Summary
The government accepted the recommendation, committing a further £5.1 million to continue the Mediation Voucher Scheme in 2022/23, providing approximately 10,400 vouchers, and is developing a wider reform programme to offer a range of out-of-court options.
Ministry of Justice
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32
Accepted
Para 111
Set out steps to reduce County Court delays and boost its overall operational capacity.
Recommendation
The County Court is vital to access to justice in England and Wales. The public relies on it to resolve disputes and vindicate their rights. As such, the significant increase in delays in certain cases in the County Court is …
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Government Response Summary
The government accepted the recommendation, detailing plans to maximise sitting days, provide administrative and staffing support, continue the Reform programme, and highlighted a £324 million investment over three years to improve timeliness in civil and family courts and tribunals.
Ministry of Justice
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Conclusions (6)
1
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 10
HMCTS deserve praise for delivering the Nightingale Court project. The project made a major contribution to increasing the capacity of the courts during the pandemic.
Government Response Summary
The government committed to implementing a medium-term maintenance programme for the court estate with multi-year funding and has a planned pipeline of future works. It will continue to seek further funding and consider alternative solutions like temporary venues for repairs.
2
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 14
The maintenance backlog in the court estate is a serious problem. While there are some good court buildings, far too many are in a poor condition. This is having a negative effect on other elements of court capacity and, if not addressed, risks undermining the delivery of the high-quality justice …
Government Response Summary
The government is investing £1.3 billion to transform the justice system, including implementing 21st-century technology and online services, with the reform programme expected to complete by December 2023.
8
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 28
When the number of staff and judges falls more sharply than the overall caseload, there are bound to be capacity issues in the courts. Even if the number of cases falls more quickly than the number of staff, reducing judicial and staff capacity creates a risk when there is always …
Government Response Summary
The government stated that the existing Better Case Management framework sets reasonable timeframes for Crown Court cases and committed to continuing to improve the CJS Delivery Data Dashboard for monitoring timeliness, but offered no new specific actions for increasing capacity.
9
Conclusion
Accepted
The Government, the Judiciary and the Judicial Appointments Commission should work closely together to address the challenges in recruiting judges in those areas where there is the greatest need for increased capacity. In relation to the pay of HMCTS staff, the Government needs to ensure that pay levels keep up …
Government Response Summary
The government committed to expanding judicial recruitment, increasing maximum sitting days for crime Recorders from 30 to 80 days, and legislating to raise the judicial mandatory retirement age from 70 to 75, as part of efforts to increase court capacity and reduce the Crown Court backlog.
20
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 66
The Committee recognises the advantages for advocates to attend remotely; however, it is important to recognise that in Crown Court cases dealing with the most serious cases, it will often be in the interests of justice for advocates to attend in person.
Government Response Summary
The government outlined its ongoing efforts to increase court capacity and efficiency, including maximizing sitting days, judicial recruitment, and increasing the use of part-time judges, without directly addressing the recommendation regarding in-person advocate attendance in Crown Court.
33
Conclusion
Accepted
To enhance the capacity of the civil and family courts, it is vital to address each of the core elements of court capacity: judicial, staff, digital and physical. As the Lord Chief Justice explained, digital and physical capacity have a significant bearing on the ability to recruit judges and expand …
Government Response Summary
The government accepted the underlying sentiment, detailing plans to maximise sitting days, ensure administrative and staffing support, continue the Reform programme, and highlighted a £324 million investment over three years to improve timeliness in civil and family courts and tribunals.