Lord chancellor and justice secretary David Lammy will today confirm if he intends to scrap jury trials for all but the most serious cases as part of wider efforts to tackle what he has declared a ‘courts emergency’.

The Ministry of Justice announced that Lammy, who is also deputy prime minister, will set out ‘the most sweeping modernisation of the criminal courts in a generation’ later today. Lammy said he was ‘calling time on the courts emergency that has left victims of the most serious crimes waiting years for justice and pushed the justice system to the brink of collapse’.

With the record Crown court backlog predicted to hit 100,000 outstanding cases by 2028, Lammy said the government ‘must be bold’ and he will ‘set out a fast and fair justice plan that gives victims and survivors the swift justice they deserve.’

A leaked briefing from Lammy to ministers and civil servants last week revealed that only rape, murder, manslaughter and ‘public interest’ cases would be heard by a jury. Defendants charged with offences carrying a sentence of up to five years would be tried by a judge alone, which goes beyond the three years recommended by the Leveson review of criminal court delays.

David Lammy MP arrives at Royal Courts of Justice to be sworn in as lord chancellor

Lord chancellor, justice secretary and deputy prime minister David Lammy has declared a 'courts emergency'

Source: Michael Cross

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The proposed curb sparked an immediate backlash from solicitors and barristers, and an urgent question in the Commons chamber. Critics will have to wait for Lammy's statement in parliament - today's press release merely states that he will set out how the government will ‘free up Crown court time so the most serious crimes are heard swiftly and fairly’ and ‘create faster routes for lower-level cases, as in Canada’.

In part one of his criminal courts review, former Queen’s Bench Division president Sir Brian Leveson ‘concluded that there are certain circumstances where a trial by judge alone is appropriate, which is the case in common law countries such as Australia, Canada and New Zealand. This is based on the need for cases to be resolved in a more timely manner, in a forum most proportionate and suitable to the alleged offence or offences’.

Also in today's announcement: up to an extra £34m a year in criminal legal aid fees for advocates and match-funding an unspecified number of pupillages.