A judge clambered on to the roof of a courthouse to clear the gutters, the Lady Chief Justice has revealed as she urged government to invest in justice to make courts “fit places to work in”.
Baroness Carr, the most senior judge in England and Wales, made the remarks in front of Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood at the annual Judge’s Dinner at Mansion House on Tuesday.
“Concrete steps are needed to help the courts and judiciary secure the rule of law effectively”, she said.
“And that includes ensuring that sustainable and long-term funding is made available.
“We have a judicial system that has almost been taken for granted as the envy of the world. We need digitisation, we need to harness the power of AI in appropriate ways, we need modern flexible courtrooms and IT systems, and experienced staff, in order to maintain its standing.”
Baroness Carr insisted courts and tribunals must be “supported with the basic necessities for the future”, and illustrated how the buildings must be “fit places for the judiciary and HMCTS staff to work in”.
“We cannot continue to have judges - as I understand one did - taking it on themselves to climb onto a court roof to clear a gutter that was blocked and causing a leak”, she said.
The autumn Budget is due to be delivered next week, and Chancellor Rachel Reeves is under pressure to deliver investment in justice to tackle the courts crisis.
Backlogs of criminal cases in the Crown Courts have reached record levels, yet sitting days for judges have been capped for the first time in three years.
The courts estate of England and Wales also has an estimated £1 billion backlog of repair and maintenance work.
Ms Mahmood, in her remarks, said she could not be drawn on the contents of the Budget, but promised: “This government will pursue the hard work of restoring and reforming our justice system.
“We will support you in delivering justice more swiftly, we will promote this country’s standing as a global beacon of the rule of law and we will back our legal sector, which is so vital to this government’s mission to kickstart economic growth.”
