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.
