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 juries for cases with sentences of up to three years could lead to miscarriages of justice.
The government faces its most serious backbench revolt since coming to power, with over 65 Labour MPs thought to be considering voting against the bill. Justice Secretary David Lammy failed to convince leading Labour critic Karl Turner after a meeting on Monday night. Turner, who coordinated a previous letter from 38 Labour MPs opposing the plans, said he had “absolutely not” been convinced.
The Conservatives are expected to force a vote to block the bill’s second reading on Tuesday. However, the true scale of the rebellion may not be clear, as many MPs may abstain and vote against it at a later stage. Courts Minister Sarah Sackman could not confirm whether rebel MPs would lose the whip, but said dissenting voices would help “scrutinise and improve the bill”.
Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy accused the government of “an unacceptable attack on an ancient right”, arguing that juries provide a safeguard between citizens and the state. In response, Lammy wrote in the Telegraph that blocking the bill would allow criminals to walk free, citing a backlog of nearly 80,000 crown court cases, almost double the 2019 figure.
Former post office operator Jo Hamilton, wrongly convicted in the Horizon scandal, also criticised the plans, saying they would “further erode trust in the establishment”. She recalled being “coerced” into pleading guilty without a jury and warned of more miscarriages of justice. The letter to Starmer, signed by former Director of Public Prosecutions Sir David Calvert-Smith, acknowledged the need to reduce court delays but stressed that juries had not caused the crisis, which it attributed to chronic underfunding.
