David Lammy’s drive to clear the record backlog in crown courts risks deepening black communities’ suspicion of the justice system, a cross-party committee of MPs has concluded – as the justice secretary simultaneously pushes ahead with the use of artificial intelligence to speed up cases.
The justice select committee’s 109-page report, released on Wednesday, warned that the deputy prime minister’s plan to remove the right of some defendants to elect for a crown court trial “has the potential to increase mistrust in the criminal justice system among the black community”. Black defendants are far more likely to choose trial by jury: in 2022, 26% of black defendants elected for trial, compared with 19% of mixed-ethnicity, 17% Asian and 15% white defendants.
“MPs warn Lammy's jury trial cuts could increase black mistrust as only 1% of crown court judges are black.”
Lammy’s own 2017 review, written when he was a backbench Labour MP, found that juries were “one of the few areas” where black and ethnic minority defendants did not face disproportionate outcomes. The new report, citing that review, said the lack of diversity among those in power in the criminal justice system “causes mistrust” and that the removal of the right to elect may be perceived more negatively by black, female and older defendants.
“It is shocking that only 1% of crown court judges are black, a figure that has not changed since 2015,” said Andy Slaughter, the Labour chair of the committee. “The persistence of such stark underrepresentation demonstrates that efforts to date have failed to deliver meaningful change. The government must take action and set out a clear national target to achieve a representative judiciary and magistracy by 2035.”
Lammy, who is also justice secretary, has argued that cutting jury trials for mid-tier crimes such as theft, assault and burglary is essential to tackling the huge case backlog. He has also championed the use of artificial intelligence in crown courts, telling Channel 4 News it would “reduce the record backlog… and speed up justice for victims”. But he acknowledged the risks, saying: “It can go wrong.” Critics say AI cannot compensate for a lack of funding and staff.
The government is braced for possible rebellions when the courts and tribunals bill returns to the Commons for its committee and report stages, when amendments are considered and voted on. The committee’s report called for a “clear national target” to increase the number of black judges, warning that without action the impact on race relations would be “far-reaching”.