The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected the work of the criminal justice system and necessitated extensive changes in criminal courts to keep judges, court staff and users safe.

The backlog of uncompleted crown court cases in England and Wales rose to 60,692 in the three months to June.

The backlog of cases in criminal courts in England and Wales is likely to be a pervasive issue for several years, severely affecting victims, witnesses and defendants, the National Audit Office has said.

In a recent report published in October 2021 by the National Audit Office, the Ministry of Justice’s plan to tackle the backlog is ambitious and hinges on securing funding and resources.

Parliament’s spending backlog says uncertainty around funding, physical and judicial capacity in courts and the capacity of other criminal justice agencies and support services all pose a threat to the recovery. Additionally, the Ministry of Justice and Her Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) are described as “not yet working towards shared, strategic objectives” with respect to the backlog.

The report chimes with grave warnings from lawyers and observers.

It says the backlog in the Crown Courts, which hears the most serious cases, had already increased by 23% in the year leading up to the coronavirus pandemic.

Despite a quick response by the Ministry Of Justice and HMCTS to the pandemic, the National Audit Office says the number of cases received and not yet completed in the crown courts increased by another 48% in the 15 months to the end of June, to 60,692.

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Jackie Benn

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