CBA Action on ‘No Returns’: Statement by Andrew Thomas QC, Head of Lincoln House Chambers, Manchester

From Monday 11th April 2022, members of Lincoln House Chambers will be supporting the CBA’s action on ‘no returns’. The membership of the CBA have voted overwhelmingly to take action, with 94% of votes in favour in the recent ballot.

The campaign’s objective is to halt the long term damage to the Criminal Justice System due to chronic underfunding. The government’s failure to implement the recommendations of the Independent Review of Criminal Legal Aid, chaired by Sir Christopher Bellamy, was the final straw. We have to act now.

This action is necessary to protect the future of the Criminal Justice System. The evidence gathered by the Independent Review shows that two decades of cuts and neglect have undermined legal service provision in the criminal courts.

The work of solicitors and barristers is vital to ensure that justice is done both for the victims of crime and for those accused of crime. We act for many of the most vulnerable people in society and in cases which have life-changing consequences on both sides.

Urgent action is required to prevent the system collapsing altogether. We have to be able to recruit and retain skilled professionals to prosecute and defend in criminal cases. Both professions are losing experienced criminal practitioners either to other areas of work or from legal practice altogether. Many younger recruits struggle to make a living and leave within a few years, despite many years of study.

Solicitors have also spoken out. Stephanie Boyce, President of the Law Society, said on 29th March 2022:

“The crisis in our criminal justice system has seen the backlogs in the courts spiral to unprecedented levels, leaving victims, witnesses and defendants waiting years for justice.

Without necessary investment – at least on the scale Sir Christopher has said is urgently needed – the backlogs will continue, and it is likely that in five years’ time, we will no longer have a criminal justice system worthy of the name.”

Despite claims to the contrary, the government have not acted on the core findings of the Independent Review, including the recommendation of an immediate increase of 15% in criminal legal aid funding as a starting point. The government have produced figures which have not stood up to scrutiny and they have proposed deferring investment to the end of the year. They have refused to create an independent funding review body.

We recognise that the Bar’s action will cause inconvenience and delay in some cases. We have taken steps to minimise avoidable problems, but the action will begin on Monday. It is our sincere belief that the short-term disruption which will result is a small price to pay in our campaign to halt the gradual collapse of the Criminal Justice System and the professions which are vital to its operation.

The government commissioned the Independent Review. It is not unreasonable to ask them to accept its evidence and implement its recommendations immediately.