JUSTICE BACKLOG

The UK's criminal justice system is facing unprecedented case backlogs and record prisoner numbers because of both covid-19 and government plans to recruit an extra 20,000 police officers, the Institute for Government (IG) said. In its latest report, the IG said that with the lockdown closing courtrooms for all but a small number of priority cases, waiting times to hear cases could increase Workplace cultures showcased for National Stress Awareness Month by more than 70 per cent in the event of a six-month lockdown. Many defendants and victims could be forced to wait more than six months for crown court trials. The government would need to spend an extra £55m'“110m a year for two years to run the necessary extra trials according to the IG. It also estimated the prison population could rise to a possible 95,000 by 2023-2024. 29 April 2020

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