Overview
- Turner was the only Labour MP to vote against the government as a Conservative opposition-day bid to block the proposals was defeated 290 to 182.
- The Hull East MP said he does not expect to lose the Labour whip and declared he “does not care” if he does, adding he texted Sir Keir Starmer that he “ought to be ashamed.”
- The package would remove jury trials for offences likely to carry sentences of three years or less, end defendants’ ability to choose a jury trial, and curb appeals from magistrates’ courts to crown courts.
- Plans also include a judge-only ‘swift courts’ bench division for either-way cases, while the most serious offences such as murder, rape and manslaughter would continue to be tried by a jury.
- The Bar Council said it is in complete opposition, calling the changes ideologically driven and a threat to a long-standing constitutional principle, while the Ministry of Justice says victims face unacceptable delays and legislation has not yet been introduced.