Thank you for @BellRibeiroAddy for supporting the justice needs juries campaign . The failure of @sarahsackman and @DavidLammy to engage with us on this has only strengthened the concern about these “knee jerk” proposals. #justiceneedsjuries

Justice needs Juries If this legislation is passed don’t dare to be falsely accused , don’t dare to be innocent , don’t dare to be too poor to pay for your own defence . Please listen to our members lobbying MPs today . #saveourjuries

We remain quiet on x these days but thank you to our colleagues at @TheCriminalBar and @CrimeSolicitors for buying with us . We know that many MPs are concerned about the sledgehammer approach taken by @DavidLammy and colleagues to crack this nut. There are plenty of alternatives

Friday update from new president @caseyleej whose term in office starts with some positive developents . lccsa.org.uk/a-welcome-from-…

The bar, solicitors, police, CPS, victims commissioners and all other stakeholders in CJS even the judiciary, must come together to say listing trials in 2027 and 2028 is not justice and this cannot and must not go on @TheCriminalBar @lccsa @CrimeSolicitors @LDNVictimsComm

We are so pleased to be involved in this Pilot to embed #ChildFirst practices in police custody suites. The aim is to decrease detention of children, increase the use of diversion and improve overall outcomes for children. This is a a king awaited and welcome initiative

london.gov.uk/programmes-str… We are proud to be part of this Pilot aimed at changing the way children are treated in police custody by cutting detention rates, their time in custody, and reducing the number of charges—encouraging a #ChildFirst approach. #YouthJustice @MOPACLdn @lccsa @YPATweet @mediate_kate @metpoliceuk

Wonderful evening, supporting this fantastic lady becoming CHAIR of the @lccsa. We are here to support you @caseyleej & @KatieMcFadden27 from all @HJACrimeTeam. You’ve got this 🥂

Over 100 solicitors firms warn the @MoJGovUK not to take an intention to tender as a given . Without further funding and adopting the recommendations of the independent review the market shrink and tenders will be withdrawn .

Criminal firms warn the Lord Chancellor that applications for new crime contracts should not be seen as an indication that firms will continue to provide criminal defence services if funding commitments are not met. "We fully expect that the majority of firms undertaking criminal legal aid work will preserve their position by submitting a tender for the new contract. However, there is a huge difference between submitting a tender as a result of an artificially swift deadline imposed by the Ministry of Justice and actually seeking and ultimately signing a new contract in 2025. Whether firms decide it is financially viable to continue to provide legally aided criminal defence services, and accept the contract offer, or maintain a contract for more than a short period is wholly dependent on whether the new government heeds the warnings of the profession and the High Court. We look to the new government to restore rates to a level which will ensure a sustainable future for the profession" crimeline.co.uk/wp-content/u…

Lawyers have warned of the “implosion” of the criminal justice system, as they revealed that some trials are now being scheduled as far away as September 2027. @Independent via @andygregory_ps “The Independent has been told of numerous trials involving bailed defendants accused of serious sexual and violent crimes not due to start for well over two years – even before facing any of the last-minute delays frequently blighting the crown courts, often setting trials back further by months and leaving victims waiting for justice. Experts warned that trials involving suspects who have been refused bail are frequently being scheduled for late 2025, far beyond the intended six-month remand period, serving to fuel the overcrowding crisis in prisons – where the population of such inmates is at a record high. Warning that one of his clients was last month given a trial date in April 2027, leading criminal barrister Maximillian Hardy said: “The courts have become a hoarder’s house and you can’t even get over the threshold any more. This is not justice delayed: it’s justice drowned.” While a data error has prevented the government from publishing statistics on the crown courts’ performance for the past six months, experts say the number of trials backlogged in the system is now likely at a record high, in excess of 70,000 cases – up from fewer than 33,000 in 2019. With trials often subject to further last-minute delays after being scheduled, figures previously obtained by this publication suggested the number of cases waiting more than three years for a verdict had soared at least sevenfold since 2019 to exceed 1,280 last June. And further analysis by The Independent found that a record 134 rape cases were among the 5,776 trials waiting more than two years as of September, compared with just 10 rape cases out of the 344 hit by the same length of delay in 2019. Criminal Bar Association analysis found the average time for a rape trial, from a bailed suspect being charged, soared 80 per cent in the past five years to hit 555 days last year. Sam Townend KC, chair of the Bar Council, warned that if ministers “are to have any chance of reducing the court backlogs and achieving swift justice”, they must allow the courts to run at full pelt by removing the cap on judge’s sitting days, which is “causing delays and concern in courts up and down the country”. “It is of concern, although unfortunately not surprising, that trials are now being routinely listed for 2027,” added Mr Townend, warning that “justice delayed is often justice denied” as victims, defendants and witnesses “cannot get on with their lives until the serious criminal case is tried”.” independent.co.uk/news/uk/ho…

If anyone is wondering what the level of "collapse" now is in the Crown Courts: At nearly 3pm the day before a PTPH for a remanded defendant accused of section 20 wounding (DV) there's no Draft indictment and no key statements or exhibits AT ALL been served.