Britain’s courts are grinding to a halt. But what are we prepared to give up to get them moving again?

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In recent months, jury trials have been offered as a sacrifice. Faced with vast backlogs in the Crown Courts, policymakers are looking for ways to speed cases through the system by moving more cases away from juries and into judge-only decisions. It sounds like a small change, but it’s anything but.

Trial by jury is a safeguard that places ordinary citizens at the centre of justice, ensuring that decisions about guilt are not left solely to the state. It reflects a basic principle that justice should be done with the consent and participation of the public. Remove it, even partially, and you begin to erode that principle - as well as the norms and practices that have made Britain the great country it is today.

There is no doubt the government is under financial pressure. There is no doubt the backlog is real. But what is the response? More cutbacks followed by demands for staff to do more with less. More efficiencies dressed up as reform.

These changes would actively undermine due process and replace it with a system that resembles a conveyor belt where people are processed quickly, rather than treated fairly.

And the courts aren’t an isolated case. They reflect a broader pattern across British public life. Everything from national infrastructure to our media is stretched to breaking point, as the institutions that once defined Britain are in decline.

The justice system stands out because it goes to the heart of national identity. A country that trims jury trials to save money is a country that is starting to forget why those protections existed at all.

What makes this especially frustrating is that there are alternatives. The majority of defendants in the Crown Courts already have a criminal record. That tells us the system is intervening too late. We are picking people up when the damage is already done instead of preventing it in the first place.

If we were serious about reform, we would start earlier. Diversion schemes, problem solving courts and restorative justice programmes all have a strong evidence base. They reduce reoffending, ease pressure on the courts and deliver outcomes that victims often find more meaningful.

A serious justice system should not just process crime. It should prevent it. It should intervene early, address the social conditions that lead to offending and stop problems from escalating.

Britain today looks like a nation lowering its standards because it feels it has no choice. That is a dangerous place to be.

Dr Shaun Yates is Course Leader for the Criminology and Law BA and Criminology and International Security BA at London Metropolitan University.

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