Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 3
3
We are not convinced that the Department can recruit enough judges to deliver on its...
Recommendation
We are not convinced that the Department can recruit enough judges to deliver on its ambition to reduce the Crown Court backlog. Reducing the backlog to 53,000 by March 2025 relies on increasing the number of days that the Crown Court hears cases, from 100,000 in 2021–22 to 105,000 in 2022–23, then 106,500 in both 2023–24 and 2024–25. This requires a significant increase in the number of judges, for which the Department’s plan does not seem credible. Its plans are predicated on successfully recruiting 78 full-time, salaried circuit judges. This is despite only 6 Reducing the backlog in criminal courts filling 52 of 63 positions during the previous recruitment round. The resulting dependence on deploying criminal barristers and solicitors as part-time judges, as well as increasing the work load of part-time judges, to make up shortfall reduces much-needed capacity within the legal profession to prosecute and defend cases. We are concerned that the need to significantly improve the diversity of the judiciary will be overlooked in the Department’s efforts to boost the number of judges. Recommendation: In its Treasury Minute response, the Department should set out what specific actions it will be taking to ramp up recruitment while improving diversity in the judiciary.
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: March 2024 (end of the spending review period) 3.2 Since 2017, the pool of fee paid judges in the courts has increased by 12% and the cadre of Deputy District Judges is 27% larger as laid out in the judicial diversity statistics 2017 and the 2021 statistics published on Gov.UK. 3.3 Recorder recruitment has met or exceeded the original vacancy request in each of the last three years and there are 30 more Deputy High Court Judges than in 2017. The healthier fee-paid pool is key to meeting the need for salaried roles (for which previous judicial experience is a requirement). 3.4 Recruiting sufficient salaried judges has been challenging. Action has been taken on remuneration: the pension reforms from April 2022 resulting in a 17% uplift in remuneration for District and 20% for Circuit Judges; and the Department has adjusted its recruitment approach (for example, reducing from 30 to 15 days the sitting experience required for those applying to be a District Judge). The increase in the judicial retirement age in March 2022 to 75 years will also enable the retention of additional judges. Alongside this, the Department and Judicial Diversity Forum will continue its action to improve judicial diversity as set out in the Judicial Diversity Action plan. 3.5 To meet the needs of court recovery, recruitment for 70 Circuit Judges and 125 Recorders commences in 2022. Should there be shortfalls, these will be mitigated by: • increasing Recorder recruitment where there are higher numbers of appointable candidates and increasing Recorder sittings. All crime Recorders can sit 80 days in 2022- 2023 (rather than usual maximum of 30) and where there is a business justification, the maximum has been raised to 180 days; • approval of District Judges (Magistrates Court) to sit in the Crown Court; and • approving Circuit Judges to sit in retirement.