Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of serving magistrates are under the age of 40.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The breakdown of magistrates in post by age bands is provided in table 3.6 of the annual official Diversity of the Judiciary statistics (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/diversity-of-the-judiciary-2025-statistics).
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the duration of hearings required to determine whether an offence is likely to attract a custodial sentence of three years or more.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Criminal cases will continue to start in the magistrates’ court and will be sent to the Crown Court by magistrates where the seriousness or complexity of the case means it is more suitable for trial on indictment.
Post reforms, to determine whether a triable either-way case is eligible for trial in the Crown Court Bench Division, a Crown Court judge will assess whether the case is likely to attract a custodial sentence of three years or less. The process for allocations in the Crown Court will be similar to the existing approach used in the magistrates’ courts. We have full confidence in our judiciary to apply the Sentencing Guidelines appropriately when deciding the mode of trial. Eligibility for the Crown Court Bench Division will be assessed at the first opportunity a defendant has to enter a plea – normally the plea and trial preparation hearing where the judge will consider mode of trial among other case management factors to ensure the case is ready for trial.
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which (a) court and (b) judicial body will determine whether an offence is likely to attract a custodial sentence of three years or more for the purposes of allocating the mode of trial.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Criminal cases will continue to start in the magistrates’ court and will be sent to the Crown Court by magistrates where the seriousness or complexity of the case means it is more suitable for trial on indictment.
Post reforms, to determine whether a triable either-way case is eligible for trial in the Crown Court Bench Division, a Crown Court judge will assess whether the case is likely to attract a custodial sentence of three years or less. The process for allocations in the Crown Court will be similar to the existing approach used in the magistrates’ courts. We have full confidence in our judiciary to apply the Sentencing Guidelines appropriately when deciding the mode of trial. Eligibility for the Crown Court Bench Division will be assessed at the first opportunity a defendant has to enter a plea – normally the plea and trial preparation hearing where the judge will consider mode of trial among other case management factors to ensure the case is ready for trial.
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate his Department has made of the time required for a single judge to prepare written judgments in criminal cases tried without a jury.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Post-reforms, any judge sitting alone in the Crown Court will give a reasoned judgment for their verdict in open court. This will increase transparency over how decisions to convict or acquit are reached as juries do not currently give reasons for their judgments.
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his planned timetable is for Crown Court judges to produce written judgments in cases tried by a single judge sitting alone.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Post-reforms, any judge sitting alone in the Crown Court will give a reasoned judgment for their verdict in open court. This will increase transparency over how decisions to convict or acquit are reached as juries do not currently give reasons for their judgments.
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he plans to introduce a sunset clause for proposals to limit jury trials.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
There has been no major reform of the criminal courts since the establishment of the Crown Court in 1971, despite Lord Auld making similar recommendations to Sir Brian Leveson in 2001.
Sir Brian’s report found that jury trials are taking twice as long as they were in 2000 - one of the reasons is increased complexity in modern cases, the density of evidence deployed to establish them, and the increased efforts made to provide support and guidance to jurors.
We are working within a system built for a different age and even with record investment, the Crown Court caseload will continue to rise. We need generational structural reform, investment, and modernisation.
Everyone has, and will always have, the right to a fair trial. But there is no right to trial by jury in England and Wales and the vast majority of criminal trials in this country are conducted – fairly, without a jury – in the magistrates’ courts. Jury trials will nevertheless remain for the most serious cases - these reforms are designed to ensure a more proportionate use of overall resource in our criminal courts to ensure we are best serving the needs of both victims and defendants, to deliver better, swifter outcomes.
There is no quick fix - it will take time to tackle an issue which has been years in the making, but we must act before the caseload becomes irretrievable. There are no plans to introduce sunset clauses for all proposals.
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2024 to Question 14304 on Prisoners Escort, how her Department defines agreed court start times.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
The team in HM Prison & Probation Service responsible for managing the Prisoner Escort & Custody Service (PECS) contracts collects data relating to trial delays from several sources. HM Courts and Tribunal Service submits a Court Exceptions Report in respect of each instance of hearing delay; the contractors also self-report any delays; and the contract management team undertake further assurance work through site visits.
Court operating times were agreed with HM Courts and Tribunal Service as part of the procurement process for the PECS contracts and are set out in contract schedules. For each court day, the start time is determined by the judge, taking account of the scheduled operating time. The PECS contractor is required to produce the prisoner in advance of the start time decided by the judge, provided this is within the operating times set out in the contract.
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 20 November 2024 to Question 14304 on Prisoners Escort, how her Department collects data on prisoner delays.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
The team in HM Prison & Probation Service responsible for managing the Prisoner Escort & Custody Service (PECS) contracts collects data relating to trial delays from several sources. HM Courts and Tribunal Service submits a Court Exceptions Report in respect of each instance of hearing delay; the contractors also self-report any delays; and the contract management team undertake further assurance work through site visits.
Court operating times were agreed with HM Courts and Tribunal Service as part of the procurement process for the PECS contracts and are set out in contract schedules. For each court day, the start time is determined by the judge, taking account of the scheduled operating time. The PECS contractor is required to produce the prisoner in advance of the start time decided by the judge, provided this is within the operating times set out in the contract.
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2024 to Question 12397 on Prisoners Escort, how many penalties for late delivery of a prisoner to the Magistrates Court were issued in (a) 2024 and (b) 2023.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
Delays attributable to prisoner escort supplier failure are calculated from the point at which court proceedings are ready to commence, provided this is within the agreed court start times and the delay is greater than 15 minutes. Penalties (known as service credits) are applicable for every subsequent 15 minutes of delay, or part thereof, whereupon the supplier is penalised for a full 15 minutes.
The following information relates to application of service credits for late delivery of a prisoner to either the Crown Court or a magistrates’ court.
In 2023, out of 299,470 journeys to court undertaken by the Prisoner Escort and Custody Service, 484 instances of supplier failure resulted in service credits being paid by suppliers.
In 2024, up to 31 October, out of 274,606 journeys to court, there were 228 instances of supplier failure that resulted in service credits being paid by suppliers. 99.92% of all journeys arrive on time.
As delays are recorded in periods of 15 minutes, it is not possible to calculate a precise average length of delay.
The breakdown requested between the Crown Court and magistrates’ courts is not available, and the work needed to provide it could not be undertaken without incurring disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 11 November 2024 to Question 12397 on Prisoners Escort, how many penalties for late delivery of a prisoner to the Crown Court were issued in (a) 2024 and (b) 2023.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Vice Chamberlain (HM Household) (Whip, House of Commons)
Delays attributable to prisoner escort supplier failure are calculated from the point at which court proceedings are ready to commence, provided this is within the agreed court start times and the delay is greater than 15 minutes. Penalties (known as service credits) are applicable for every subsequent 15 minutes of delay, or part thereof, whereupon the supplier is penalised for a full 15 minutes.
The following information relates to application of service credits for late delivery of a prisoner to either the Crown Court or a magistrates’ court.
In 2023, out of 299,470 journeys to court undertaken by the Prisoner Escort and Custody Service, 484 instances of supplier failure resulted in service credits being paid by suppliers.
In 2024, up to 31 October, out of 274,606 journeys to court, there were 228 instances of supplier failure that resulted in service credits being paid by suppliers. 99.92% of all journeys arrive on time.
As delays are recorded in periods of 15 minutes, it is not possible to calculate a precise average length of delay.
The breakdown requested between the Crown Court and magistrates’ courts is not available, and the work needed to provide it could not be undertaken without incurring disproportionate cost.