Walking up the stairs and into the bowels of the 19th century courthouse, the crumbling state of the criminal justice system is unavoidable.
One of the two staircases to the five courts upstairs is closed, with a tarpaulin sheet covering it. Other areas have also been covered in sheets.
They have been spread in an attempt to mitigate the effect of water leaks at Minshull Street Crown Court, Manchester’s historic courthouse which dates back to 1871. It is understood that a fault has left vents open, allowing water to come in, in an area which is difficult for engineers to access.
The sheeting has been in place for months. The area underneath the water leakage has been taped off so court users don’t get wet.
But that’s not even the most concerning thing about the court.
The backlog
Statistics recently revealed that Minshull Street ranks second among crown courts in England and Wales for the number of cases waiting to be heard. With an outstanding caseload of 2,378, only Snaresbrook Crown Court in London has a bigger backlog, with 3,442 cases waiting to be resolved there.
And the situation across Greater Manchester is not ideal. At Manchester Crown Court, in Crown Square, Spinningfields, the city’s modernist courthouse built in the 1960s, 1,984 cases are waiting to be heard. While the figure stands at 967 at Bolton Crown Court. It is, of course, not just a problem which is affecting Greater Manchester’s courts.
Nationally, the backlog for cases in the crown court has almost doubled in the past five years. In total, there are 73,105 cases waiting to be heard by judges across England and Wales, with the latest statistics running to September this year. While some in the legal system question whether these statistics are accurate, there is an acknowledgement that the system is in a mess.
Minshull Street Crown Court in Manchester city centre
(Image: ABNM Photography)
A lack of investment, with reduced sitting days for judges, as well as the Covid pandemic and the barristers strike in 2022 have exacerbated the problem.
The knock on effect
In practical terms, these unconscionable delays are having a devastating impact. Victims are waiting years to get justice. Some may be left so fed up by the delays that their patience is tested to the limit, and decide to withdraw in a bid to move on with their lives.
While waiting for cases to be heard, memories of what happened when a crime was committed can also fade or alter. It means witnesses may be less reliable when brought to the stand.
And it is just as hard on the accused, who can wait for interminable periods with serious allegations hanging over their heads, stuck in a state of limbo. ‘Custody time limits’ mean that those accused of crimes who are held in custody before their case is resolved have to be prioritised, and dealt with in a timely manner. Defendants can be kept in prison for 182 days before their case is heard. These periods can be extended, in exceptional circumstances.
Those defendants who are on bail are therefore pushed towards the back of the queue. And the sheer size of that queue has been on full view in Greater Manchester’s courtrooms in recent weeks and months.
The trials of those who are on bail are regularly being scheduled for the end of 2026, or even early 2027, years after complainants first made their allegations. A young man in his 20s stands accused of raping a woman in 2022. He appeared in the magistrates court 15 months after the date of the allegation, and due to its seriousness, the case was transferred to the crown court.
The trial was scheduled to take place in December this year, but had to be adjourned for another year, until January 2026. If that date is retained, then the trial will be taking place almost four years after the alleged incident. In another case, a man accused of dangerous driving in October this year was informed that the earliest date his trial could be scheduled was in November 2026.
A man accused of assault and ill treatment of a child was expecting to go on trial in January. However, due to a ‘lack of court time’ the case was put back until January 2026. The complainant first gave an interview to police in 2018.
It fell to Judge Maurice Greene, the senior judge at Minshull Street, to explain to the defendant in that case why he would have to wait another year for his day in court. “There’s just no court room available, I’m afraid,” the judge told him.
“I would have liked to have kept it where it was but I can’t. I would have liked to have listed it earlier, but I can’t.
Bolton Crown Court
(Image: MEN Media)
“I just can’t list it any earlier than that. We are listing cases at the end of the year and at the beginning of 2027 now. It’s just the state of things, I’m afraid. I’m sorry about that.”
And even when cases do reach the courts, there are often problems in getting the case started. One senior judge recently ordered a prison boss to explain herself in court after a defendant, who was being held in custody, was not brought to Manchester on the first day of his trial.
A day of court time was wasted after the man in his 30s, accused of causing grievous bodily harm, was not brought from jail. The prison boss endured some tough questioning from the frustrated judge. Earlier this year, a murder trial held in Manchester involving juvenile defendants often started late due to delays in the arrival of the accused.
Despite the problems, there are some positive signs for the future. An expedited trial system has been put in place, which aims to ensure that cases involving allegations of domestic abuse, where defendants are on bail, and where trials are set to only last a few days, are given priority.
At Minshull Street, the court is back to a full cohort of judges after being significantly understaffed for a long period. There is also a feeling that Greater Manchester crown courts have had a significant increase in workload, following Greater Manchester Police chief constable Stephen Watson’s vow to increase arrests and bring offenders to justice.
Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr
(Image: PA)
Despite the tireless efforts of lawyers and court staff working behind the scenes, the system is struggling to cope. For many, including the country’s most senior judge, Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr of Walton-on-the-Hill, the issue of judges’ sitting days is key.
‘Justice delayed is justice denied’
She criticised the Government’s decision to limit the amount of days that judges across the country could work in the courts, arguing that they should be allowed to work at ‘full capacity’, representing 113,000 days for judges over a 12 month period in crown courts up and down the land.
In response, the Ministry of Justice said the Government had increased the number of sitting days to 106,500, a figure higher than in six of the last seven years, and blamed a ‘challenging financial inheritance’ while outlining how it is ‘committed’ to tackle the backlog.
Justice delayed is justice denied, said Prime Minister William Gladstone in 1868, the very same year the foundation stone was laid at Minshull Street Crown Court. It is a legal maxim which continues to ring true. It appears to be widely accepted that continuing with the status quo is not an option.
The Government has announced Sir Brian Leveson, a former High Court judge who chaired the public inquiry into press ethics, will lead a review into what can be done. Among the proposals under his consideration are said to be the use of ‘intermediate courts’, where cases are heard by a judge flanked by magistrates. They would be used when an alleged crime is deemed too serious for magistrates’ courts but not serious enough for the crown court.
Shabana Mahmood MP, the Justice Secretary
(Image: Getty Images)
Any curtailment of the use of jury trials is likely to lead to a backlash from the legal profession, as a top KC told the M.E.N. when the idea was mooted at the start of the pandemic. But the Government has said that it believes that ‘bold’ thinking is required to solve the problem.
What the Justice Secretary has to say
Commenting on the state of the courts and the need for improvements, Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood MP said: “The scale of the Crown Court crisis inherited by this government is unprecedented. Despite the efforts of judges, lawyers and court staff, we simply cannot continue with the status quo.
“To deliver the government’s bold Plan for Change and make our streets safer, we require once-in-a-generation reform of a courts system stretched to breaking point. In many cases, victims are waiting years to see their perpetrator put before a judge, and we know for many victims, justice delayed is as good as justice denied.
“We owe it to victims to find bold, innovative approaches that will speed up justice, deliver safer streets and send a clear message to criminals that they will quickly face the consequences of their actions.”
Sam Townend KC, Chair of the Bar Council, the representative body for barristers, said: “The figures show the perilous state of the criminal justice system. Criminal barristers are already working at full capacity. They work the longest hours in our profession, report the lowest wellbeing and we are extremely concerned about burnout at the criminal Bar.
“Earlier this year we called for the establishment of a review of the criminal justice system and welcome the government’s announcement. We entirely agree with the government’s aims to reduce the court backlogs, speed up trials and rebuild public confidence in the criminal justice system.
“Those working in the crumbling justice system have been propping it up with goodwill at the expense of their wellbeing and personal lives for too long. The number of trials cancelled on the day because legal professionals are not available has risen dramatically since COVID. This lets victims, witnesses, defendants, professionals and the public down. If the backlog is to have any chance of being cleared, we need immediate, targeted and sustained investment.
“The courts crisis, illustrated by the latest figures, is the result of decades of cuts and a severe lack of investment. To address the multitude of challenges, we need some new solutions, but additional funding is also desperately needed.
“The Leveson review will present initial recommendations by spring 2025 and we are fully committed to engaging with the review process, but we also need urgent action from government now to avert more crisis.”
Asked about the issue of water leaking at Minshull Street, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Justice said: “Temporary measures are currently in place to mitigate roof leaks at Minshull Street Crown Court. The situation has not affected court sittings and repair works to permanently fix the issue are due to be completed in the New Year.”