Of all the strikes underway or impending right now — at Felixstowe, on the Tubes and trains — that of criminal barristers, which is set to start in September, may seem less significant for most people. But it would be wrong to underestimate its impact. The decision of the barristers to go on an indefinite, uninterrupted strike will effectively bring a crucial element of the criminal justice system to a halt. It is a notable escalation of the barristers’ strike to date, which has entailed them not working on alternate weeks. It will affect those undertaking legal aid work, that is, representing people who cannot pay for fees. The frozen cases will include murder and rape trials.
The immediate cause of the strike is a disparity between the Government’s pay offer of 15 per cent from the end of September and the barristers’ demand of a 25 per cent increase. There was already a backlog from the pandemic in the number of cases being heard: figures from HM Courts and Tribunal Service at the end of April show there were 58,973 cases waiting to go to trial. The immediate effect of the strike will be to significantly aggravate the problem.
This bald figure disguises the real extent of the crisis. It now takes on average 700 days from a reported crime to the end of hearing the case in the Crown Court, up from under 400 days a decade ago. For rape trials the average time to complete a case is more than 1,500 days after the reported offence. This takes the old adage about justice delayed being justice denied to a whole new level. In human terms, it translates into anguish for victims, the potential loss of witnesses and the dropping of cases because those involved simply cannot endure any further delay. It is utterly at odds with the interests of justice.
This dispute must be resolved quickly. One issue with the Government’s existing offer is that it will not apply to cases which are already in the criminal justice backlog and are covered by the existing fee scheme. Amending the deal may be a sensible compromise.
Mind your languages
The GCSE results which come out this week will confirm what we already know, that there has been a drastic fall in the number of pupils studying a foreign language. Only 40 per cent of secondary school pupils are currently studying a foreign language.
The latest figures show just 36,000 teenagers in England took German GCSE this year, down from more than 37,000 last year. There were just over 126,000 French GCSE entries this summer, which is a huge decline compared to the 340,000-plus who regularly took French 20 years ago.
These figures are enormously dispiriting, representing the failure to provide pupils with one of the most important and enriching elements of the curriculum. Languages are now increasingly the preserve of private schools. This trend must be halted, and reversed.
Back to the stalls
Theatres have been through a harrowing time, weathering first closures and now enormously increased costs. But they have taken a bold move to increase audiences, by offering a huge range of tickets for top shows for £15 for two weeks. Let’s all join the rush.
