Recommendations & Conclusions
4 items
10
Conclusion
Fifty-Second Report - Key challenges fa…
Acknowledged
Government has also committed additional funding to support the court system to reduce the backlogs, including by making court rooms safe through the installation of plexiglass and introducing 40 Nightingale courts, with plans to increase this by a further 20 courts. It has also brought back into service some court …
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Government has also committed additional funding to support the court system to reduce the backlogs, including by making court rooms safe through the installation of plexiglass and introducing 40 Nightingale courts, with plans to increase this by a further 20 courts. It has also brought back into service some court rooms it closed through its court reform programme. The Ministry told us this increase in capacity was beginning to show some results, particularly in magistrates’ courts, but the overall situation remained very challenging.12 Despite having 290 rooms that can be used for jury trials, the Ministry told us that trials involving more than one defendant (“multi-hander trials”) are proving particularly difficult to accommodate, but that work was in progress to address these challenges. It also committed to maximising the number of sitting days for judges this financial year. Despite us pressing the Ministry for clarity, it was unable to tell us what level of backlog it was planning for. The Ministry could say at least that it aims to reduce the backlog to lower than pre-pandemic levels, but those levels were already unacceptably high.13
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Government response AI summary
The government reiterates the Lord Chancellor's commitment to run Crown Courts to the fullest extent possible with no limit on sitting days and describes ongoing work to maximize hearings. HMCTS and the senior judiciary have published a plan to restore Magistrates' Court listing and timings …
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HM Treasury
12
Conclusion
Fifty-Second Report - Key challenges fa…
Acknowledged
We have previously reported on HMCTS’s £1.2 billion programme to modernise courts, a very ambitious programme aiming to change how people access justice using more technology, closing courts and centralising customer service. We were concerned that HMCTS was at risk of falling behind schedule despite extending its timetable from four …
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We have previously reported on HMCTS’s £1.2 billion programme to modernise courts, a very ambitious programme aiming to change how people access justice using more technology, closing courts and centralising customer service. We were concerned that HMCTS was at risk of falling behind schedule despite extending its timetable from four to six years, and that the pace of reform and pressure to make savings was limiting HMCTS’s ability to evaluate the impact on users and justice outcomes, particularly for vulnerable users.15 The Ministry and HMCTS told us that despite the pandemic, the programme is in its final stages and will not require a further extension to its timetable. They told us that some parts of the programme, including video hearings, were accelerated during the pandemic and that about 20,000 video hearings were now taking place each week. The Ministry and HMCTS told us they were confident that the parts of the programme that are behind schedule are within the contingencies they had planned for.16 They were also confident that, with regards to the reunification of probation services, that private sector suppliers will maintain their services until the handover in June 2021, but that they had contingency plans in place should a supplier fail before that time.17
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Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the committee's concerns about the HMCTS modernisation programme, confirming the reform is still due by December 2023 without extension despite pandemic adjustments. It details an additional £8 million investment in data infrastructure and management, and the publication of an evaluation framework for …
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HM Treasury
15
Conclusion
Fifty-Second Report - Key challenges fa…
Acknowledged
We have previously reported that the Ministry and HMPPS’ management of the prison estate has resulted in a staggering backlog of maintenance work.21 The backlog in maintenance is now estimated at £1 billion. The recent spending review included £315 million in 2020–21 to address this, significantly below what is required …
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We have previously reported that the Ministry and HMPPS’ management of the prison estate has resulted in a staggering backlog of maintenance work.21 The backlog in maintenance is now estimated at £1 billion. The recent spending review included £315 million in 2020–21 to address this, significantly below what is required to maintain the prison estate. We raised the risk that, without enough funding to meet resource pressures, the Ministry and HMPPS could again end up redirecting capital funding to gaps in the budget. The Ministry told us it was confident that HM Treasury understood the value for money implications of insufficiently funding the maintenance backlog and that they were in discussions to secure future funding to meet the challenge.22 Continued strain on frontline staff
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Government response AI summary
The government acknowledges the committee's concern about the maintenance backlog by confirming £315 million in capital funding for 2021-22 to extend critical refurbishment projects and begin tackling it. It also reiterates its commitment to developing a robust long-term strategy for the prison estate.
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HM Treasury
16
Conclusion
Fifty-Second Report - Key challenges fa…
Acknowledged
We received evidence from the Bar Council raising concerns around the safety of court staff during the pandemic. A recent survey they conducted showed 84% of barristers who attended court in December 2020 had concerns about their safety and wellbeing.23 We questioned the Ministry and its agencies on the impact …
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We received evidence from the Bar Council raising concerns around the safety of court staff during the pandemic. A recent survey they conducted showed 84% of barristers who attended court in December 2020 had concerns about their safety and wellbeing.23 We questioned the Ministry and its agencies on the impact of Covid-19 on staff sickness rates. The Ministry told us that the Covid-19 related absences rate in the court system was under 2% and that there had been few cases of transmission identified within the court system itself. HMPPS told us of the short-term challenges related to the number of staff that have been on Covid-19 related sick leave, and that 10% of its staff were currently absent. We welcomed HMPPS’ work to support staff returning to work after periods of absence caused by the pandemic.24
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Government response AI summary
The government agrees on the importance of staff and describes existing support measures, including increased visibility of senior leaders and an extensive program of support services and wellbeing events. It commits to continue focusing on staff support as it adapts to easing restrictions.
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HM Treasury