Oral Answers to Questions

Bradley Thomas Excerpts

Tuesday 10th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Sarah Sackman)]

My hon. Friend is right that justice delayed is justice denied, and our hearts break for victims waiting too long for trials to come. That is why we must tackle the Crown court backlog, which we are doing by keeping open 16 Nightingale courts through the recruitment of more judges. As I said previously, we need fundamental reform, and that is what we will bring about.

[Bradley Thomas (Bromsgrove) (Con)]

To boost public confidence in the criminal justice system, can the Minister confirm that the Government will not resort to increased dependency on community sentences, many of which are unserved?

[Shabana Mahmood]

As the hon. Gentleman will have heard me say many times, we have brought forward an independent sentencing review to look at the issues of sentencing in the round to ensure that we are never again in the position where we are about to run out of prison places and cannot lock up those who must be locked up for reasons of public protection. The review will also make recommendations on how prisoner rehabilitation can help people turn their lives around and, more importantly, cut the number of victims that would result from reoffending.