Criminal justice system ‘about to crack’ as prosecutors refuse work over low pay
The criminal justice system is “about to crack” with a record number of trials being aborted at the last minute because no one is available to prosecute them, the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) has warned.
A fresh row is bubbling after the government agreed to boost legal aid fees by 15% in October in a bid to end defence barrister strikes.
The deal – made by Brandon Lewis during his brief stint as Justice Secretary under the Truss administration – has created a disparity of fees between defence advocates and prosecutors.
Most barristers in England and Wales are self-employed, meaning they can choose what side of the work to take.
Kirsty Brimelow KC, the chair of CBA, said prosecution barristers are “effectively striking” by refusing to take on cases for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and opting for defence work instead.
“A lot of barristers are saying they’re no longer going to prosecute, because they don’t want to be in a case where they are receiving 20% less than the person who’s defending,” she told Sky News.
“The CPS is finding that they’re ringing round hundreds of chambers and they still can’t find anyone to take the case to prosecute it, and I’ve come across that myself.”
‘The justice system is failing’
Ms Brimelow called the situation an “unprecedented crisis” that will hinder efforts to clear the crown courts backlog, which soared to record highs during the pandemic.
“It used to be unheard of that you would have trials that would be adjourned because you cannot find a barrister to prosecute, and now it’s pretty common.
“This impacts on delays as cases are bounced back sometimes for another year. It impacts on the trauma for witness complainants and it impacts upon defendants who are saying they’re not guilty and can’t get on with their lives either.
“So all around the justice system is failing.”
Kirsty Brimelow, chair of the Criminal Bar Association
The shortage is particularly being felt in rape and serious sexual assault offence cases (RASSO), which require barristers with special qualifications to prosecute.
‘Almost impossible’ to return rape trials
A senior barrister who prosecutes for the CPS said it is “becoming almost impossible” to return complex grade 4 trials “because so many grade 4s have just walked away”.
But one grade four RASSO barrister said: “Why would anyone now accept new CPS instructions? It means in 18 months time still working for already inadequate rates, can’t be done.”
Max Hill KC, the head of the CPS, has also backed calls to raise prosecution fees to address the shortage.
A government spokesperson said they are “working closely with the CPS to help make sure the criminal justice system can function effectively”.
“Spending Review settlements have been maintained and any requests for further funding will be considered by HMT in due course,” they added.
It provides a fresh headache for ministers as they come under mounting pressure to tackle the NHS crisis and wave of industrial unrest grinding the public sector to a halt.
Last month, the Ministry of Justice hailed “significant progress” since the government published its landmark rape review action plan, including a rise in rape charges and convictions.
But the CBA says while it is encouraging more cases are reaching court there has also been an “exponential rise” in RASSO trials being cancelled on the day due to a lack of staff and resources.
Official figures show that in the year to June 2022, 314 rape and serious sexual assault trials were “ineffective” – meaning they could not go ahead on the day – because of a lack of court rooms, judges, defence advocates or prosecution barristers, up from 109 in the previous year.
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Criminal barristers in England accept pay rise offer
The amount of prosecution “no-shows” were 15 times higher than the previous year and 10 times more than the yearly average for past seven years, according to the CBA analysis of the data.
Data for the most recent quarter has not been published, but the CBA say they are aware of a string of serious rape trials that were aborted last minute in December as no cover could be found for prosecution.
One example included a case in Newcastle involving a defendant in his 70s and several complainants – which has now been re-listed for July 2023.
Effect on victims and witnesses
James Oliveira-Agnew, a barrister who specialises in RASSO trials, raised concern about prosecutions being dropped if victims traumatised by long delays withdraw their support, and of unfair acquittals due to the effect of delays on witnesses’ memories.
Data from April to June 2022 suggests rape victims are already waiting an average of 1397 days – almost four years – for their cases to be complete, with the biggest increase in delay coming post charge.
Mr Oliveira-Agnew said he has cases in his diary for the middle of 2024 “because that’s the earliest time they can get things in” but there is no guarantee they will go ahead if prosecutors can’t be found.
“What we are seeing happening on the ground a lot now, which I have never seen before, is turning up on the day of the trial (defending), we will get a judge if we are lucky, the witnesses and everyone who is required but you won’t have a prosecutor.
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“If you’re a complainant, and something like this has happened to you and you build up everything and you come to court on that first morning, ready to have this traumatic experience to be told it’s cancelled, it’s soul destroying.”
Mr James Oliveira-Agnew said a barrister will earn £1,600 more defending a five-day rape trial than prosecuting it “so parity of fees is vital”.
‘A break down in trust’
He said the long-term consequence of not taking action will be a break down in trust of the justice system.
“If people don’t trust the justice system, people aren’t going to report crimes because they’re not going to see the point, and people are going to commit crimes because they’re going to get away with it.”
The government has introduced a raft of measures to speed up justice for victims and improve the system since the start of the pandemic, including lifting the cap on the number of days courts can sit on and quadrupling funding for victim support services to £192m a year by 2025.
But Ms Brimelow said: “The system is about to crack and there has to be urgent action of increasing the prosecution fees so that they achieve parity with the defence.
“Otherwise, it’s a total waste of resources piling in huge amounts of money into Victim Support, when the alleged offences are never going to see the inside of a Crown Court.”
Criminal barristers in England and Wales have entered an indefinite strike
A CPS spokesman said: “The criminal justice system depends on equality of arms between defence and prosecution.
“We are continuing to engage with Bar leaders regarding prosecution fees as we continue to use a mix of in-house and external advocates to meet our needs and support the provision of quality advocacy services.”
World
‘Have the meeting now!’: Trump says Ukraine should ‘immediately’ agree to direct talks with Russia
US President Donald Trump has demanded that Ukraine should “immediately” agree to direct talks with Russia in a bid to end the war.
It comes after Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his team were “ready to meet” Russian representatives following Vladimir Putin suggestion of peace talks, subject to an unconditional ceasefire starting on Monday.
Russia‘s president put forward the proposal for talks in Istanbul on Thursday after European leaders including Sir Keir Starmer threatened him with fresh sanctions if Russia failed to comply with an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on Monday.
Analysis:
Why calls for Ukraine talks are likely a delaying tactic from Putin
However, in a post on his Truth Social platform on Sunday, Mr Trump said he was “starting to doubt that Ukraine will make a deal with Putin”.
He urged them to accept the meeting invitation “immediately”, adding “have the meeting now”.
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Putin’s call for peace talks genuine?
Mr Trump wrote: “President Putin of Russia doesn’t want to have a ceasefire agreement with Ukraine, but rather wants to meet on Thursday, in Turkey, to negotiate a possible end to the bloodbath.
“Ukraine should agree to this, immediately. At least they will be able to determine whether or not a deal is possible, and if it is not, European leaders, and the US will know where everything stands, and can proceed accordingly.
“I’m starting to doubt that Ukraine will make a deal with Putin, who’s too busy celebrating the Victory of World War ll, which could not have been won (not even close!) without the United States of America.
“Have the meeting now!”
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Kremlin: ‘We don’t share Starmer’s view’
Shortly after Mr Trump’s post, Mr Zelenskyy posted on X saying: “We await a full and lasting ceasefire, starting from tomorrow, to provide the necessary basis for diplomacy.
“There is no point in prolonging the killings. And I will be waiting for Putin in Türkiye on Thursday. Personally. I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses.”
When Mr Putin first suggested the talks, Mr Trump hailed it “a potentially great day for Russia and Ukraine” and said he would “work with both sides to make sure it happens”.
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Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan also said he “fully supported” Mr Putin’s proposal and was ready to host the talks, after the two leaders spoke over the phone on Sunday.
But security and defence analyst Michael Clarke told Sky News presenter Matt Barbet there is a “long way between now and Thursday” and a “fair bit of brinkmanship” going on.
He said even if the talks do go ahead, “the chances are they’ll extend over a long period and there won’t be a ceasefire as a result of them, and the Russians will keep playing this out”.
European leaders hold call with Mr Trump. Pic: Number 10
Mr Putin’s counteroffer of talks came after Sir Keir, Mr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron, recently elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk met in Kyiv.
The leaders said they had secured Mr Trump’s backing after briefing him on the progress made on the so-called “coalition of the willing” plans in a 20-minute phone call.
World
Terror group supporters posted on TikTok, YouTube and Google from site targeted in Indian airstrikes
Social media accounts expressing support for a Pakistan-based terror group linked to al Qaeda appear to have posted recent videos from a Pakistan mosque targeted by Indian airstrikes.
Sky News has found videos posted on TikTok, YouTube and Google that appear to be filmed at the Markaz Taiba Mosque in Muridke. The captions and usernames contain expressions of support for the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and a group called ‘313’.
Sky News has found and geolocated multiple videos that appear to be filmed in the area where the captions include either or both ‘313’ and LeT.
Some of the videos show men in the streets with guns. Another post captioned a video of children doing martial arts training inside the targeted mosque, “we are little soldiers, and we fight the non-believers”.
The caption of the video reads ‘we are little soldiers, and we fight the non-believers’. It uses the hashtag ‘313’.
The caption uses the hashtag #جہاد313, which translates to ‘313’ jihad.
‘313’ appears to refer to the 313 Brigade, a proscribed terror organisation in Pakistan.
In a TikTok video posted to the Google page for Markaz Taiba Mosque in Muridke, a man can be seen walking along the street with a gun.
The account that posted that video wrote in their description, “Lashkar Taiba, Mujahid Force, ‘313’ and Markaz Taiba Muridke”, self-proclaiming their support for the groups.
This screenshot from the Google user labels Lashkar-e-Taiba and ‘313’ and includes the location name Muridke
India’s retaliatory strikes on Pakistani-adminstered Kashmir and Pakistan on 7 May came after a deadly attack in Indian-administered Kashmir last month.
Gunmen opened fire on tourists, killing 26 people and injuring dozens in a popular holiday spot near Pahalgam, Kashmir, on 22 April.
LeT were accused by India of involvement in the Pahalgam attack through their proxy the Resistance Front, which claimed responsibility for the attack.
LeT, which is designated as a terrorist organisation by the UN Security Council and the UK, focuses on fighting Indian control in Kashmir and is based in the Punjab region of Pakistan.
Pakistan denies allegations of terror camps operating in the country. This region has been in the control of the Punjabi government since 2010. The Punjab government condemned the Indian strikes, and declared a state of emergency across Punjab.
Muskan Sangwan, senior intelligence analyst at TRAC, a terrorism research and analysis consortium, told Sky News: “Brigade 313 is al Qaeda in Pakistan. It’s an umbrella organisation for members of several groups like Taliban, Lashkar-e-Jhangvi, Haqqat ul-Jihad-al-Islami, Jaish-e Muhammad, Lashkar-e-Taiba, and Jundullah.”
Ms Sangwan explained that ‘313’ refers to the number of companions said to have fought with the Prophet Mohammed in the Battle of Badr.
TRAC have seen a recent uptick in TikTok videos and other social media posts that refer to ‘313’.
Many of the accounts are linked to each other.
Ms Sangwan said: “They [the TikTok users] mostly use ‘313’ as a hashtag… trying to push that hashtag to as many people it can reach on social media.”
Sky News sought to verify the location by comparing before and after videos from the strike location, and using the video released by the Indian army conducting the strike.
One video showing damage at the strike location was posted by a user with 313 in their TikTok username.
The TikTok account that posted video footage of the destruction in Muridke has 313 in the username
Below is satellite imagery that shows the destruction of the site.
Satellite imagery shows Markaz Taiba Mosque after the strike on 7 May. Credit: Maxar
In one TikTok, the video is captioned “bring your arms and ammunition and go to war”. The text on the screen of the TikTok is ‘313’ and he is carrying a gun.
The group are comfortable with having an online presence. On the Google tag for Markaz Taiba Mosque in Muridke, men pose for a group photo. Almost all the people in the photo have used ‘313’ on TikTok.
Ms Sangwan explained: “With these people from Muridke, pushing this propaganda on social media would generate a lot of significance in terms of recruitment and in terms of gaining support from local people and from other people.”
Sky News’ Asia correspondent Cordelia Lynch has reported on the ground in Muridke.
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Anger in Pakistan after India strikes
India says it struck Markaz Taiba, a site in Muridke about 15 miles (25km) from the border, which has long been claimed to be a terrorist training site associated with LeT.
MEMRI, a US-based research group that monitors terrorist threats, told Sky News: “It has been known for decades that Lashkar-e-Taiba has its headquarters in Muridke.”
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Sky News contacted the Pakistan Ministry of Defence for comment. Khawaja Asif, Pakistan’s defence minister, told Sky News: “This appears to be a random video with background music added later – consistent with how TikTok trends often function. If this is to be considered credible evidence, we could produce millions of similar clips ourselves.”
Mr Asif also said that any suggestion that the mosque was used as a base by terrorists was a “completely false, social media made up hoax”.
On 7 May, after the strikes in Pakistan, the Indian subcontinent branch of al Qaeda issued a statement condemning India’s actions and encouraging its supporters to wage jihad against India.
The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said his country is “ready to meet” Russian representatives after Vladimir Putin suggested peace talks in Istanbul from Thursday.
Russia‘s president put forward the proposal as European leaders including Sir Keir Starmer threatened him with fresh sanctions if Russia failed to comply with an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on Monday.
Reacting to Mr Putin’s suggestion, US President Donald Trump said it was “a potentially great day for Russia and Ukraine” and he would “work with both sides to make sure it happens”.
Mr Zelenskyy has also welcomed the proposal, but reiterated his call for a ceasefire.
He said: “It is a positive sign that the Russians have finally begun to consider ending the war. The entire world has been waiting for this for a very long time. And the very first step in truly ending any war is a ceasefire.
“There is no point in continuing the killing even for a single day. We expect Russia to confirm a ceasefire – full, lasting, and reliable – starting tomorrow, May 12th, and Ukraine is ready to meet.”
On Saturday, the prime minister met the Ukrainian president alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, recently elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Kyiv.
Announcing the 30-day ceasefire proposal, the leaders said they had secured the backing of Mr Trump after briefing him on the progress made on the so-called “coalition of the willing” plans in a 20-minute phone call.
What Trump does next is crucial
Russian President Vladimir Putin is playing for time and may have been caught on the hop by European leaders, backed by US President Donald Trump, demanding a 30-day ceasefire during their visit to Kyiv yesterday.
Russia’s proposal of talks in Istanbul on Thursday appears hurriedly conceived, announced as it was in the early hours of the morning by Putin.
There is an added symbolism to his suggestion of Istanbul as a venue. Russia has long blamed Ukraine for walking away from peace talks in the same city in 2022.
The key thing is that diplomatic movement of sorts is happening.
Ukraine and its European colleagues want to capitalise on Trump’s renewed enthusiasm for a ceasefire and his potential scepticism of how ready Putin actually is to make peace.
The Europeans will hope this isn’t drawn into a protracted period of negotiations, or simply talking about the idea of negotiations.
What President Trump does next will be crucial.
Speaking at the Kremlin in the early hours of Sunday, Mr Putin did not directly address the proposal but instead offered to restart peace talks Russia and Ukraine held in 2022.
“We propose the Kyiv authorities resume the negotiations they interrupted at the end of 2022… to resume direct negotiations… without any preconditions… to begin without delay next Thursday 15 May in Istanbul,” he said.
Speaking to Sky News Russia correspondent Ivor Bennett after the statement, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Moscow does not “share the view of Starmer”.
“We think that the seriousness is to propose negotiations,” he said, denying the move was a delaying tactic.
Mr Peskov said there had to be negotiations to find a way for a ceasefire, adding: “A simplistic approach to a ceasefire is inappropriate.”
European leaders including Volodymyr Zelenskyy hold call with Donald Trump. Pic: Number 10
Russia’s own unilateral three-day ceasefire, declared for the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany, expired on Saturday, and Ukraine said Russian forces have repeatedly violated it.
After the summit in Kyiv, Sir Keir said: “All of us here, together with the US, are calling Putin out.
“So we are clear, all five leaders here – all the leaders of the meeting we just had with the coalition of the willing – an unconditional ceasefire, rejecting Putin’s conditions, and clear that if he turns his back on peace, we will respond.
“Working with President Trump, with all our partners, we will ramp up sanctions and increase our military aid for Ukraine’s defence to pressure Russia back to the table.”
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During Mr Putin’s statement on Sunday, he insisted he would support peace talks, adding: “We are committed to serious negotiations with Ukraine.”
He told reporters: “Their purpose is to eliminate the root causes of the conflict, to establish a long-term, lasting peace.
“We do not rule out that during these negotiations it will be possible to agree on some new truces, a new ceasefire.”
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Responding to Mr Putin’s proposal, Mr Macron said the Russian leader was “looking for a way forward, but he still has a desire to buy time”.
Mr Putin’s proposed negotiations are “a first step, but they are not sufficient,” he told French broadcaster BFM.
“An unconditional ceasefire is not preceded by negotiations, by definition.”
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