The funds will facilitate an uptick in Crown court sitting days
The UK courts system has received a funding commitment of £450 million annually by 2028-2029 from chancellor Rachel Reeves, reported the Law Society Gazette.
The funds are expected to support the uptick of Crown court sitting days "to record levels," Reeves said in a statement published by the Gazette. They will also facilitate the implementation of Sir Brian Leveson’s recommendations in his criminal courts review.
As per the pledge in HM Treasury papers issued alongside Reeves' spending review, the ministry's day-to-day spending will increase by 1.8 percent per year on average in real terms between the 2025-2026 and 2028-2029 financial years. Capital spending is also anticipated to soar next year to finance 14,000 new prison locations by 2031.
An additional £700 million per year by 2028-2029 has been earmarked for the probation service to support the delivery of reforms recommended by ex-lord chancellor David Gauke in his independent sentencing review. The total funding for law officers' departments will increase to £1.3 billion in 2028-2029; day-to-day spending will tick up from £160 million in real terms from 2023-2024 to 2028-2029.
The Treasury said in a statement published by the Gazette that the funds will "provide record investment into the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to bring criminals to justice, with total funding of £1 billion in 2028-29."
"The CPS will recruit more Crown advocates and frontline staff to prosecute cases, build workforce capacity and capability, and improve the quality and efficiency of prosecutions," the Treasury said.
UK Bar Council vice chair Kirsty Brimelow said in a statement published by the Gazette that the 3.1 percent average real terms boost in Ministry of Justice funding was "a welcome recognition by the government that justice is a key public service."
"Money for increasing court capacity, tackling court backlogs, and implementing the recommendations from the Independent Review of Criminal Courts are signs of listening by government to our voices from the courts. Increased funding for the probation service is long overdue, and funding of the Crown Prosecution Service will enable them to achieve parity between prosecution and defence pay in the Crown courts," she said. "We hope that the details of the settlement for the courts will address the need for further support for the criminal bar, including the implementation of legal aid increases which will assist retention, as well as additional support for both the civil and family bar, covering legal aid and early legal advice."
Law Society of England and Wales President Richard Atkinson said in a statement published by the Gazette that the review geenrated hope that the justice system was a rising priority, but pointed out that "all parts of the justice system have been starved of investment for decades."
"It will take long-term sustained funding to fix it, including in civil and criminal legal aid to address the crises there. The consequences of the neglect are plain for all to see. There are crumbling court rooms and antiquated IT systems, huge backlogs delaying criminal court cases to 2029 and thousands of children in legal limbo due to family court delays. Prisons are overcrowded and there are chronic shortages of legal aid lawyers," he said. "Families, victims and business need justice to be prioritised. The government must invest across the system, reducing pressure on the courts, by focusing on early advice and out of court resolution. We also need proper funding of solutions that will reduce the prison population and improve rehabilitation to break the cycle of reoffending."
