Esther McVey has hit out at government plans to end trial by jury claiming it will see an end to one of the country’s basic fundamental human rights.
The Tatton MP said she had been contacted by local barristers and lawyers even Tatton school pupils, outraged about the proposals.
Government claims ending trial by jury for cases with an expected sentence of three years or less will reduce the 78,000 backlog of cases currently awaiting trial.
There are around 1.3 million prosecutions in England and Wales every year, and 10 per cent of those cases go before a Crown Court. Of those, three out of 10 result in trials. Critics – including most barristers – say the reforms appear to mean that more than two out of 10 will still go before a jury – therefore having little or no impact on numbers.
Ms McVey said it was “complete nonsense” removing juries would reduce the backlog and called for court sitting times to be extended and the “failure” of prisoner transportation to be addressed to ensure no unnecessary delays on court time, instead.
Ms McVey said: “Who would have thought that a government led by a human rights lawyer would be leading the charge to remove one of the most basic human rights, a trial by jury.
“There will be no realistic change to the waiting list but what this government is doing is removing what is a fundamental right (to be tried by a jury).
“My constituents from school pupils to the leader of the northern circuit and barristers from the middle temple, urged me to speak and say this was an absolute disgrace and put forward some of their suggestions.”
Speaking in an opposition day debate where the Conservatives demanded government abandon the plans, Ms McVey told of how local barristers believe the move would not reduce the backlog but “erode the trust of the public in our justice system”, was “based on no credible evidence”, and would “erode a deeply entrenched constitutional principal that a jury may acquit as a matter of conscience”.
She also told the debate many had expressed to her deep concerns government was pushing ahead without carrying out a pilot scheme.
Ms McVey added: “Constituents have also said to me, that for such an important change to our unwritten constitution there should have been mention of this in the Labour Party manifesto.”
Ms McVey who vehemently opposes the plans said government’s lack of data, impact assessment and pilot scheme was “very revealing” but extremely concerning.
