Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministerial Statement

Courts and Tribunals Bill

18 June 2026 · 5 other contributors

Opened by Andrew Slaughter Lab Hammersmith

Justice & Courts

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Andrew Slaughter raised concerns about courts and tribunals bill in the House of Commons. A government minister responded. Other MPs also contributed.

Key points

  • The Courts and Tribunals Bill aims to address the Crown court crisis with over 80,000 outstanding cases.
  • The bill incorporates elements from Sir Brian Leveson's independent review but diverges on some recommendations.
  • The Justice Committee's report raises concerns about increased magistrates' sentencing powers, impact on appeals, and equality issues.

How the debate unfolded

MPs spoke in turn to share their views and ask questions. Here's what each person said.

Government Statement

Andrew Slaughter

The Courts and Tribunals Bill, introduced in February 2025 to address the Crown court crisis with over 80,000 outstanding cases as of December 2025, is based on Sir Brian Leveson's independent review but deviates from some recommendations. The Justice Committee’s report critiques the bill and highlights issues such as increased magistrates' sentencing powers, impact on appeals, recording systems in magistrates courts, judge-only trials, and equality concerns. Andrew Slaughter emphasises the need to ensure that changes are introduced only when proven effective, and calls for improvements in judicial appointments to reflect the population better.

Other contributors (5)
  • Vikki Slade

    Question

    Given past recruitment drives for magistrates failed to deliver needed uplift and with the bill adding further pressure, should the Government publish regular statistics on magistrate recruitment to track progress towards achieving 21,000 by 2029?

    Minister reply

    Andrew Slaughter agrees that there has been much attention on judge-only trials but the success of the Bill will depend on recruitment and nature of magistrates court proceedings. It is only fair for Government to keep track of progress.

  • Warinder Juss

    Question

    Considering opposition to judge-only trials, does he agree it's urgent to look at how judges are appointed when only 1% of the judiciary are black?

    Minister reply

    Andrew Slaughter emphasises the need for Government to look into judicial appointments and progression, highlighting current issues with representation which undermines credibility.

  • Tessa Munt Lib Dem Wells

    Question

    I too voted for the minority report, mainly because I am particularly concerned that the Government are going much further than the Leveson report. On judge-only trials, if magistrates’ sentencing powers are increased to 24 months, it is not impossible that cases with sentences of up to two and a half years could be retained by the magistrates court, which might mean that there is little work for the Crown court bench division; it will only have a narrow tranche of cases. Does the hon. Gentleman feel that there is merit in looking at other jurisdictions, and seeing whether there are other mechanisms for allocating cases that might be fairer and more efficient?

    Minister reply

    The hon. Lady is also an assiduous member of the Committee, and I appreciate what she said about important respects in which the Government, without evidencing the reasons, have departed from Leveson—for example, on whether magistrates should sit with judges in the bench division. She makes a good point: because the Government have deviated from what Leveson recommended, there is a narrow window between what can happen in the magistrates court and what is left for the Crown court bench division to do. The Government will have to look at that again.

  • Jim Shannon DUP Strangford

    Question

    I thank the hon. Gentleman for his recommendations. Many are specific to England and Wales, but could be helpful for us in Northern Ireland. I always ask this question, because it is important that it be put on record: has the Committee suggested that the recommendations could be helpful to us in Northern Ireland? If we can get UK-wide improvement, then we must.

    Minister reply

    I rely on the hon. Gentleman to attend these statements, so that he can make that point, as he has done during every Justice Committee statement on the Floor of the House. He is right that, even though the Bill will apply in England and Wales, the lessons can be learned elsewhere. I will undertake to go back to my officials and ensure that that work is done.

Shadow Comment

Vikki Slade

Vikki Slade questioned whether regular statistics on magistrate recruitment should be published given previous failures. She also highlighted concerns about the appointment of judges, noting that only 1% are black, which undermines credibility.

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