Magistrates get more power to jail offenders as Northampton Crown Court backlog grows during pandemic

Northampton Crown Court is still facing a backlog of hundreds of cases, according to latest figures from the Ministry of Justice.

Magistrates are set to be given more sentencing powers in an effort to tackle the pile-up of offenders waiting to be dealt with by criminal courts across England and Wales.

But critics are warning the plan could actually add to the backlog, while branding it a 'sticking plaster' solution.

Latest MoJ figures showed 596 outstanding cases at Northampton Crown Court at the end of September last year.

That was down from 657 at the end of June, but up from 563 at the same point in 2020 and a whopping 49 percent than prior to the coronavirus pandemic in September 2019.

Of the cases outstanding at the end of summer, 27 percent related to alleged violent attacks and 17 percent were for sex offences.

Across England and Wales, 59,900 cases were waiting to be dealt with by crown courts at the end of September – a slight dip of one percent compared to June, but a 17 percent increase from 51,280 in September 2020.

Nearly a quarter of cases have been outstanding for a year or more.

Under plans announced by justice secretary Dominic Raab, the maximum sentence magistrates can hand out will be doubled to a year.

Currently, crimes warranting a jail term of more than six months are automatically sent to a crown court for sentencing.

Keeping more cases in magistrates’ courts, which have been 'less severely affected' by Covid, means crown courts can better focus their resources on tackling the backlog, according to the MoJ.

Mr Raab said: “This important measure will provide vital additional capacity to drive down the backlog of cases in the crown courts overthe coming years."

But Alex Cunningham, Labour’s shadow courts and sentencing minister, described the move as “another sticking plaster” solution.

He added: “Ministers must give assurances that greater powers for magistrates won’t inflict even more burden on crown courts – with increased numbers ofappeals overloading a diminishing number of criminal advocates left in the system.”

Mark Fenhalls QC, chairman of the Bar Council, warned the changes could increase the prison population and put further pressure on the MoJ budget.

Expected to come into force in the coming months, the changes will only apply to ‘either-way’ offences which can be dealt with by magistrates or crown courts. It will mean defendants can still opt to have their case heard by a jury in a crown court.

Bev Higgs, national chairman of the Magistrates’ Association which has campaigned for sentencing powers to be extended, said the organisation was “delighted” with the announcement, adding: “It is absolutely the right time to re-align where cases are heard to ensure a safe, effective, and efficient justice system."