𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

David Lammy defended his plan to axe half of jury trials by warning the Crown Court backlog could hit 130,000 in just over three years.

Alarming projections from the Ministry of Justice revealed the number of trials waiting to be heard could surge from nearly 80,000 now to 130,000 in October 2029.

And the prison population could hit 100,000 by March 2029.

Labour is relying on the projections to justify radical reforms to the justice system, including the scrapping of jury trials and releasing thousands of criminals from prison early.

Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Justice, David Lammy, said: “These figures set out the true scale of the court emergency we face – without bold reform the backlog is only going to go up. We simply cannot sit our way out of this crisis.

“Justice delayed is justice denied. That’s why I set out a blueprint for a modern justice system that works for – not against – victims, creating a system that is faster and fairer.

“My plan combines reform, increased investment in legal aid, sitting days and the courts to help us turn the tide on the rising backlog, deliver swifter justice and put victims first.”

Justice Secretary Mr Lammy told MPs judges will decide guilt in cases “with a likely sentence of three years or less” in new so-called “Swift Courts”.

Leaked plans last week revealed the Deputy Prime Minister wanted to go further, with juries only hearing murder, rape, manslaughter and “public interest cases” carrying sentences of five years and over.

Under Mr Lammy’s new plans, some sexual assault, burglary, drug dealing and robbery cases will now be heard by a single judge.

The Ministry of Justice will scrap the right of defendants to “elect” a jury trial for so-called “either way offences”.

Currently, defendants of either-way offences can have their cases heard in the Magistrates’ Court or Crown Court, where they can elect a jury trial.

But judges will now assess a case, and if it is “likely” to result in a three-year prison sentence or less, it will be heard by either a magistrate or the new Crown Court Bench Division.

Facing the prospect of a backbench rebellion over his plans to scrap half of jury trials, Mr Lammy said he was determined to get them through Parliament.

“We’ve got to push this through… If you believe in the jury system, this is, in fact, about preserving a cornerstone of our democratic settlement where you can be judged by your peers.

“But there’s something else that sits alongside that, which is at the same time as we’ve got to respond to this huge backlog of cases.

“I remember when I was studying A Level English and reading Bleak House about the famous case of John Jarndynce that went on and on and never ended – we cannot go back to that era. And if I do nothing, if I just sit here and do nothing and have an easy time, the backlog will be 100,000.”