One Small Thing responds to the Government’s new measures to reform the court system
Yesterday, the Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Justice, David Lammy, introduced the Courts and Tribunals Bill, detailing measures to reduce pressure on the court system, and provide a blueprint for structural reform.
This Bill has been introduced against the backdrop of a court system under severe strain, and we are pleased to see efforts to remedy this, ensuring the system is fair and effective. However, concern remains on the power the suggested measures have to truly reform the system, or simply displace pressure. The Government recognises that by removing the right to elect for a Crown Court trial, and increasing Magistrates court sentencing powers, more cases will be retained in the magistrates’ court. And that their reforms will lead to 6,300 additional cases a year for the probation service. Proposals that retain more cases in the magistrates’ courts will inevitably increase pressure on both magistrates and probation services, which are already struggling to intervene effectively.
Crucially, the Bill does not address Sir Brian Leveson’s recommendation in the Independent Review of the Criminal Courts to increase investment in community‑based support for women, despite evidence that gaps in provision limit courts’ ability to divert women away from custody and towards more effective, trauma‑informed alternatives.
Without strengthening these vital services, reforms risk entrenching existing pressures rather than alleviating them. Relieving pressure on our court system requires meaningful investment in the community support that enables women to access safety, stability and genuine pathways away from the justice system.
Alongside these reforms, the Government has announced the introduction of ‘Blitz Courts’to tackle backlogs, fast-tracking high-volume cases - from April 2026 these courts in London will focus on assaults on emergency workers. Whilst it is vital to clear older cases that have been waiting years for justice, we are concerned about how the Assaults on Emergency Workers (Offences) Act (AEW) 2018 disproportionately impacts women. This concern was shared by David Gauke in the Independent Sentencing Review (ISR), who recommended the impact of this legislation be investigated.
Whilst assaulting an emergency worker is serious and can cause great harm, we know that for women the circumstances that lead to being criminalised under AEW legislation can stem from a trauma response to domestic abuse or other distressing circumstances - often the very reason emergency services have been called - or from a mental health crisis.
To prevent cases building up in relation to AEW, we urge the Government to bring forward the ISR’s recommendation to investigate its impact, ensuring women experiencing trauma and crisis aren’t disproportionately criminalised, and that more effective measures are taken to prevent assaults on emergency workers from occurring in the first place.
