Crown court backlog hits record level

The crown court backlog in Wales and England has risen to a record level.

Data published on Thursday showed the open caseload was 78,329 at the end of June, up 2% from 76,957 at the end of March, when the backlog passed 75,000 for the first time.
It is also up 10% from 70,893 a year earlier, according to Ministry of Justice figures.

Some 19,164 cases had been open for at least a year at the end of June, up 17% from 16,378 a year earlier and the highest since current data began.

Open caseload refers to the number of outstanding cases.

‘Unacceptable’

Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Secretary David Lammy said: “Today’s statistics show the crown court backlog has hit a new record high and it lays bare the unacceptable wait victims face.

“That’s why since we came to power we have invested a record amount into our courts so we can deliver swifter justice for victims.

“However, money alone cannot turn the tide on the rising backlog which is why we asked Sir Brian Leveson to propose bold and ambitious reform, to put our justice system back on sustainable ground.”

Ministers are set to respond this autumn to recommendations made by Sir Brian to overhaul the courts system and tackle the backlog, where some cases are listed for 2029.

The major review, published in July, proposed to reduce the number of jury trials and create a new type of crown court where trials are heard by judges.

‘Collapse’

The review commissioned by the UK Government is aimed at trying to “reduce the risk of total system collapse”.

Nearly a third of the crown court backlog at the end of June was cases involving violence against the person (31%), with around one in six being sexual offences (17%) and around one in seven drug offences (14%).

These three categories of offence together accounted for nearly two-thirds (62%) of the full backlog.

The number of cases in the backlog involving sexual offences rose year on year from 11,062 to 13,238, a jump of 20%, while cases for violence against the person increased from 21,150 to 24,364, up 15%.

The new record level also comes as earlier this month a crown court judge hit out at the “chronic” backlog of cases after TV presenter Jay Blades was told he will not face trial for two years.

Speaking at Shrewsbury Crown Court, Judge Anthony Lowe said “it is not a proper justice system where people are having to wait that length of time for their trial”, as he adjourned the 55-year-old’s rape case until September 2027.

Elsewhere, Westminster Magistrates’ Court was closed due to a lack of water on Thursday.

Manchester Arena bomb plotter Hashem Abedi was among those due to appear at the court charged with attempting to murder prison officers, but court officials said there was no water in the building and that it was a public health risk.

There is also a new record backlog in magistrates’ courts of 361,027 cases, up 25% on 289,595 a year earlier.