After recent meetings with the Chief Constable and Police and Crime Commissioner in Humberside, it is clear that there is a lot of concern about the backlog of both Crown and Magistrates Court trials in our area. Large delays can cause further distress and anxiety for all those involved - particularly the victims of crime and those that may be called to give evidence. There are approximately 577 cases waiting in the Crown Court and 436 in the Magistrates Court. With the clear possibility of a spike in crime when the lockdown lifts, pressure will be added to the system. I understand that this is not easy - social distancing requirements make jury trials very difficult at this time for example, but the system does need to keep moving. I asked the Secretary of State for Justice today why do the courts appear unable to work safely when the police and other key workers are managing?
He told me that there has been a lot of work done over the last few weeks to find safe ways to work and that some offences such as traffic offences will be dealt with remotely within the next three weeks. Crown Courts will restart next week, firstly in the larger court centres. The Ministry of Justice and Home Office are working closely to look at how the number of trials can be increased and the backlog reduced.
I know just how hard our local police are working at this time - I'll do what I can to help make sure this issue starts to get resolved quickly and monitor progress closely.
