Overview
- The Jury Alliance organized demonstrations outside more than 30 Crown Courts across England and Wales on Monday, with local turnouts reported in York, Carlisle and Oxford.
- The Courts and Tribunals Bill would move lower-level Crown Court cases to a single judge, while leaving the most serious crimes with juries.
- Justice Secretary David Lammy says the reforms would save about 27,000 court sitting days each year, citing rising demand and the need for long-term fixes.
- Opponents argue the change weakens an 800-year-old safeguard, with Flora Page KC and local organizers warning it strips community oversight from many trials.
- The bill is at report stage in Parliament, and officials point to a backlog of roughly 80,000 cases with projections nearing 100,000 by 2028 without action.