The plans to limit jury trials in England and Wales

The courts system in England and Wales is in an unprecedented crisis. The backlog has reached 80,000 cases, and some defendants are being told they won't be able to have a criminal trial until 2030.

The government has introduced the Courts and Tribunals Bill, which contains a raft of measures to tackle delays and bring down the backlog; but the Justice Secretary David Lammy has admitted that things are going to get even worse before they get better.

The most controversial change is a plan to restrict the number of jury trials. The right to judgement by your peers has existed for more than 800 years, but for some offences, that's going to end.

Defendants will lose the right to choose between a jury trial or a magistrate's hearing in so-called "either-way" offences.

Magistrates will get increased sentencing powers - up from 12 months to 18 months.

More serious criminal cases, with likely sentences of up to three years will now be heard by a single judge - and no jury.

And only the most serious "indictable" offences, like murder, manslaughter and rape and any other offence with a sentence of longer than three years will be heard by a jury.

But will the reforms make a difference?

Presenter: Dr Joelle Grogan
Producers: Ravi Naik and Charlotte Rowles
Editor: Tom Bigwood

Contributors:
Sarah Sackman KC, courts and legal services minister
Chris Kinch, KC, who until 2024 was a senior judge at Woolwich Crown Court in south London
David Ford, national chair of the Magistrates Association