Received from: FDA
Since 2010, the Ministry of Justice has suffered harsher budget cuts than any other government department, being slashed by over a third. CPS prosecutor numbers are down by almost a third since this date, whilst their pay has been cut by 20 per cent in real terms. Legal aid rates have been cut by 42 per cent. As a result, there is a recruitment and retention crisis in both defence and prosecution.
All of this combined with the recent explosion in digital evidence has created a
perfect storm of ever-increasing workloads, increasing complexity of casework and insufficient resources both for defence and prosecution.
Congress supports the FDA’s Manifesto for Justice – endorsed by both the Bar
Council and Law Society – and calls on the government to urgently meet its four key demands:
i. a properly resourced CPS – to protect the public with a robust and effective
prosecution service
ii. no more cuts to legal aid – to ensure that justice is available to all
iii. investment in digital disclosure – to maintain public confidence in justice
iv. competitive pay and fees – to recruit and retain lawyers for a sustainable
criminal justice system.
FDA