UK Justice Secretary Alex Chalk KC announced on Friday that £220m will be invested over the next two years into the court estate as part of the Government’s uplift plan in the criminal justice system. The investments aim to ensure that the conditions of the court estate are acceptable for online hearings through better technology, improving the experience for victims and witnesses so that the Crown Courts can work at optimal efficiency without disruptions.

The court estate plan will implement no cap on sitting days for a third year, meaning that courts can stay open for as long as needed. This is important when tackling the massive criminal case backlog and ensuring both that offenders get prosecuted and victims receive justice. The Government is also extending a separate capacity boost announced in December to allow the Immigration and Asylum Tribunals to process asylum appeals promptly. The goal is to remove delays and make requests more accessible to asylum seekers.

The caps on the number of days judges could sit to hear cases started just before the pandemic, although the backlog began to grow near the end of 2019 before courts closed fully during lockdown. When courts reopened and social distancing was implemented, smaller courts were still closed. By the end of 2020, the case backlog hit 57,000 cases and jumped to over 58,000 cases by the end of 2021. Many have suggested that the criminal barristers strike near the end of 2022 contributed to the backlog. From criminal court statistics, serious crime cases such as rape and sexual offences have reached a record high in 2023 with a 29% increase in sexual offenses. The backlog makes the hearing of cases take much longer.

The Ministry of Justice issued a response to the PAC Committee’s concerns with the backlog, suggesting that they will continue to work with the judiciary and partners across the criminal justice system to improve timeliness and increase the Magistrates Court’s sentencing powers to alleviate the backlog.