More than 3,200 lawyers, including 300 senior barristers, have written to Prime Minister Keir Starmer urging him to abandon plans to reduce jury trials in England and Wales. The letter, organised by the Bar Council, describes the proposals as “unpopular, untested and poorly evidenced”. It warns that removing jury trials for cases with sentences of up to three years could lead to miscarriages of justice.
The move comes as the government faces a significant backbench rebellion, with over 65 Labour MPs thought to be considering voting against the bill. Justice Secretary David Lammy failed to convince leading Labour opponent Karl Turner after a meeting on Monday night. Turner, who previously coordinated a letter from 38 Labour MPs against the plans, said he had “absolutely not” been convinced.
Lammy has argued that the bill is necessary to tackle a record court backlog, with cases waiting to be heard in crown court nearly doubling from 38,000 in 2019 to almost 80,000. He warned opponents that blocking the bill would allow criminals to walk free. However, critics, including shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy, called it “an unacceptable attack on an ancient right”.
Former post office operator Jo Hamilton, wrongly convicted in the Horizon scandal, also wrote to Lammy, saying the plans would “further erode trust in the establishment”. She noted that she did not have a jury and was “coerced” into pleading guilty, warning that similar miscarriages could occur under the new proposals.
The lawyers’ letter, signed by former Director of Public Prosecutions Sir David Calvert-Smith, acknowledged the need to reduce delays but stressed that juries had not caused the crisis. It cited the Leveson review, which found that “chronic underfunding” was the main cause of the system’s collapse.
