Sixth report - Court capacity

The government deflected the recommendation regarding a comprehensive plan for court estate quality, instead detailing funding commitments for data improvement (£3 million for next year, increasing for 2023–25) and HMCTS data infrastructure modernisation (£16 million investment from 2020/21-2022/23), including the £20 million BOLD Programme.

The government deflected the recommendation to publish updates on the HMCTS court reform programme's progress, completion date, and cost, instead detailing efforts to recruit up to 1100 judges in 2022/23 and improvements in HMCTS staff pay and reward.

The government did not address the recommendation for a new courts' inspectorate to cover gaps in the inspection regime. Instead, it provided an update on the Nightingale court programme and committed to a comprehensive evaluation of it by the end of the 2022/23 financial year.

The government did not address the recommendation to re-establish a Courts' Inspectorate. Instead, it described efforts to increase physical capacity in criminal courts for multi-defendant trials and stated it would continue to review the court estate.

The government did not provide monthly Crown Court trial targets or a roadmap for reducing outstanding cases. Instead, it detailed the rollout of Section 28 for sexual and modern slavery offences, including monitoring its effects and publishing interim evaluation findings in the autumn.

The government did not commit to setting new timeliness targets across the criminal justice system or for specific offences. Instead, it stated it would evaluate the impact of remote hearings from the HMCTS Reform program to inform future policy.

The government did not address publishing forecasting models, a Crown Court recovery plan, or targets for increasing Crown Court capacity and sitting days. Instead, it described efforts and investments to streamline magistrate recruitment through a revised online process.

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.

The government did not set out its policy on the future use of supplementary venues like Nightingale Courts or commit to a comprehensive evaluation of them. Instead, it outlined its current consideration of a Royal Commission and listed several ongoing technology and reform programmes within the justice system.

The government did not address the recommendation to set out how many more super-courtrooms will be provided. Instead, it detailed cross-departmental work and funding initiatives aimed at supporting separating couples and children within the family justice system.

The government's response outlined ongoing civil court reform projects, including the delivery of a reformed service for civil money claims by March 2023, deflecting from the recommendation on improving listing transparency, national guidance, and specialist courts.

The government has deferred the recommendation to establish a Royal Commission, stating they are considering where it would add most value given substantial existing cross-departmental work and ongoing significant reform programmes in the criminal justice system.

The government deflected the committee's concern about missed opportunities and the need for sustained investment in data collection, instead defending existing scrutiny mechanisms and rejecting the idea of re-establishing a court inspectorate due to significant resourcing and legislative requirements.

The government deflected the recommendation regarding improving data quality for court capacity analysis, instead committing an extra £477 million to the Criminal Justice system over three years to reduce the Crown Court backlog to 53,000 cases by March 2025.

The government did not address the committee's conclusion about the insufficiency of existing inspections. Instead, it detailed ongoing efforts to improve judicial recruitment, court capacity, and legal aid provision through various investments and programmes.

The government stated that case listing is a judicial responsibility, but it supports efforts to improve effectiveness. It also mentioned working on Section 28 rollout and developing proposals for enhanced court provision for victims of sexual violence, with further details to be available later.

The government's response discussed efforts to improve family courts and promote mediation, including a £5.1 million commitment to the Mediation voucher scheme, completely deflecting from the recommendation about reviewing Section 28 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999.

The government's response focused on general efforts to improve timeliness in civil and family courts, including a £324 million investment over three years, but did not commit to developing specific guidance on video hearings in magistrates' courts based on research.