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4w ago

Lords Warn UK Rule of Law Is Fraying, Urge Immediate Government Action

A cross-party Constitution Committee says ministers must defend judges and tackle record court delays to restore public trust.

There is an epidemic of street crime, including mobile phone theft and shoplifting, which has effectively been decriminalised, eroding people’s trust in the justice system
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Strathclyde:

Overview

  • The committee’s 95-page report, published Thursday, identifies street crime, court dysfunction and political rhetoric as key pressures on the rule of law.
  • Official data show record backlogs by end-June 2025, with more than 78,000 Crown Court cases and 310,304 in Magistrates’ Courts delaying justice.
  • Peers say ministers should publicly rebut attacks on judges and improve protections, warning that hostility threatens independence and safety.
  • Recommendations include digitising paper-based processes, encouraging alternative dispute resolution, and widening early legal advice and legal aid access.
  • The report urges legal regulators to mandate ongoing ethics training for lawyers, citing damaged trust after high-profile failures such as the Post Office scandal, and presses the government to translate £7bn in justice funding into concrete reforms.