Royal Commission on Criminal Justice

Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate Excerpts

Wednesday 3rd June 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Keen of Elie]

The manifesto commitment was that the royal commission would address prosecution, trial, sentence and parole, and I have no doubt that within that it will give consideration to the length of sentences and the need for rehabilitation.

[Lord Kirkhope of Harrogate (Con)]

While I understand that my noble and learned friend cannot talk directly about terms of reference for the commission so far, the original idea was that it would look at the efficiency and effectiveness of the criminal justice process. Does he agree that to be effective in the eyes of the public, it must also be local? The closure of many magistrates’ courts has caused considerable problems in local access to the criminal justice service. Can he ensure that the terms of reference look again at how ordinary members of the public who are involved can get access to the system?