Contributions
747 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsWe have the IRCC—Sir Brian Leveson’s review. Over 388 pages of careful analysis, he sets out how his package of reforms will begin to bear down on the backlog. As I have said, an…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsI was not here when the right hon. Member for Newark was failing to show his working out. What I have observed, however, both in my professional life before I came to this House…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsI thank the hon. Lady for the work that she did before coming to the House. I respect her experience, and it is not clear that experience of that kind and range is shared by all…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsI am very sorry to hear about my hon. Friend’s cases, which graphically highlight precisely why reform is needed and the grave crisis in our criminal justice system, which, as Sir…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsI will answer the hon. Member’s last question first. All the bodies that she referred to—victim support, victims’ organisations, the legal community, the Bar Council and the Law…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsI am grateful to the Chair of the Justice Committee for his reflection that mode of trial is worth looking at. Of course, the Government will provide an impact assessment when we…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsLet me make it very clear that for the offence of rape there will always be a jury trial. That was made clear in our proposals last week.08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsAs I said a moment ago, not a single person who has encountered the system—not the barristers, the prosecutors, the judiciary, the court staff, the victims or the jurors; no one…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsAt the moment, the Secretary of State is giving a very important speech launching the Government’s anti-corruption strategy.08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsAs my hon. Friend knows, we inherited record and rising backlogs. As I have said, we have a mountain to climb. We are trying to turn around an oil tanker, and we are not going to…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsFirst, I pay tribute not just to our judges, but our court staff and our hard-working prosecutors and defence lawyers, because we know that judges in the Crown court are hearing…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsAs she so often does, my hon. Friend has hit the nail on the head. We have in focus, at the heart of all that we are doing, the goal of delivering swifter justice for victims.…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsMy hon. Friend has asked a very important question. Equality before the law is, of course, a fundamental principle, but so is the need for all our communities to have confidence…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsI smile because I know the spirit in which the question is asked. I know that it is asked in good faith, but I also say this: as well as being a lawyer, I am also a Member of…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsThis Government inherited an emergency in our criminal courts. Record and rising caseloads are leaving victims and many accused who are seeking to clear their name facing…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsI thank my hon. Friend for all her tireless work for victims in her community who have been seriously impacted by some of the crimes that she outlines. My job is to take a look at…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsThe right hon. Gentleman is right: we should have a robust debate about the best way forward to fix what is undeniably a broken system. As a Department, we have several sources of…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsWe are looking, where we can, to invest as much as possible, but I remind the hon. Member that, when we talk about investment in sitting days, we must look at system capacity.…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsYes. As my hon. Friend knows, when I came to visit the justice centre in Telford with him we spoke a lot about the role that magistrates play, and I want to pay huge tribute to…08 Dec 2025HANSARDRestriction of Jury TrialsThe hon. Member can get hold of Hansard and read my previous answer, which is that there will be an impact assessment at the requisite moment.08 Dec 2025