The crown court backlog in England and Wales has risen by 10% to a new record of almost 80,000 cases, while wait times for trial dates have reached up to four years.
Figures from the Ministry of Justice showed the open caseload was 78,329 at the end of June, up 2% from 76,957 at the end of March, the first time the backlog passed 75,000. It is also up 10% from 70,893 a year earlier, the figures show.
The median age-length of open cases has also increased by 10% on the previous year but fallen slightly on the previous quarter. The number of cases open for a year or more increased to a peak of 19,164 cases open for a year or more – representing a 17% annual increase.
James Rossiter, from the Criminal Bar Association, said a court in London on Thursday was due to offer a trial date of 8 October 2029 – more than four years away – due to the record backlog.
In a post on X Rossiter accused the government of “cutting budgets so courtrooms stay shut”.
The MoJ’s report on the figures said the demand on criminal courts continued to grow with more than 30,000 cases entering crown courts in the latest quarter. It said courts were dealing with cases more quickly but not fast enough to keep up with growing number of cases.
It noted a 13% increase in sexual offences reaching court, a 14% increase in robberies and a 12% rise in drug offences compared with the previous year. The number of rape cases reaching court hit a peak of 1,291 representing – a 21% increase on the previous year, the report said.
The number of cases in the backlog involving sexual offences rose year on year from 11,062 to 13,238, an increase of 20%, while cases for violence against the person increased from 21,150 to 24,364, up 15%.
David Lammy, the justice secretary said victims of crime were waiting too long for justice.
Lammy, who is also the deputy prime minister, said: “Today’s statistics show the crown court backlog has hit a new record high and it lays bare the unacceptable wait victims face.”
He said the government was investing record amounts into the court system, but added: “Money alone cannot turn the tide on the rising backlog, which is why we asked Sir Brian Leveson to propose bold and ambitious reform, to put our justice system back on sustainable ground.”
In July, Leveson, a former judge, proposed that thousands of defendants could lose the right to a jury trial to help tackle the backlog and save the criminal justice system from collapse.
He recommended removing the right to be tried in crown court for offences that carry a maximum sentence of no more than two years, reclassifying some offences so they can be tried only in a magistrates court and creating a new type of crown court where trials are heard by judges.
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Ministers are due to respond this autumn to Leveson’s recommendations.
A report by the Law Society published on Thursday found that crumbling court buildings, including issues of asbestos, mould, rotten seagulls and cells flooding with excrement, were contributing to the record backlog.
Speaking at Shrewsbury crown court, Judge Anthony Lowe said: “It is not a proper justice system where people are having to wait that length of time for their trial,” as he adjourned the case of the 55-year-old TV presenter Jay Blades until September 2027.
Elsewhere, Westminster magistrates court was closed due to a lack of water on Thursday.
The Manchester Arena bomb plotter, Hashem Abedi, was among those due to appear at the court charged with attempting to murder prison officers, but court officials said there was no water in the building and that it was a public health risk.
There is also a new record backlog in magistrates’ courts of 361,027 cases, up 25% on 289,595 a year earlier.
