Thousands of lawyers oppose jury restriction plan
BBC News2 days
UK: House of Commons Approves Jury Trial Cut
Are Lammy's reforms essential or is scrapping jury trials constitutional vandalism?
Above: Judges are seen during the Rule of Law service at Salisbury Cathedral in Salisbury, England, on March 16, 2025. Image credit: Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images
The Spin
Pro-government narrative
Britain's judicial crisis requires far more than investment and efficiency boosts. While protecting juries for the most serious cases, these reforms will allow the backlog to finally be tamed. Having reached breaking point, there is no time for half-measures — the government is taking the urgent action needed to ensure England and Wales are safe under the rule of law.
Government-critical narrative
Scrapping jury trials is constitutional vandalism. The proposal ignores expert opinion, while analysis shows these reforms will reduce the backlog by just 2%. With Lammy and Starmer previously defending juries as essential protection against state overreach, this government is knowingly sentencing Britain's justice system for the sake of political point-scoring.
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There is an 80% chance that the Labour Party will have a leadership election before 2027, according to the Metaculus prediction community.
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© 2026 Improve the News Foundation. All rights reserved.Version 6.18.0
© 2026 Improve the News Foundation.
All rights reserved.
Version 6.18.0