To deliver on the organisation’s influencing objectives, Magistrates’ Association (MA) spokespeople regularly talk to the media. This year, we secured widespread coverage on topics including, among others, increasing magistrates’ sentencing powers and retirement age, court backlogs and delays, and the impact of turning 18 on young people in the criminal justice system.
In January, our National Chair, Bev Higgs JP, was quoted in The Times about extending magistrates’ jurisdiction, and the need for defendants who turn 18 before their case comes to court to have their case heard in the youth court. She also had two letters published: one in the Daily Telegraph, highlighting the MA’s concerns about serious violence reduction orders, and another one in the Sunday Times on increasing magistrates’ sentencing powers.
In the same month, our previous Chief Executive Jon Collins was quoted in the Daily Telegraph and Scottish Legal News on raising magistrates’ retirement age, highlighting the growing shortage of magistrates.
In February, The Times shared our thoughts on extending court operating hours and on the single justice procedure. The launch of the MA’s LGBT+ special interest group was also featured in the Law Society Gazette.
In March, Bev wrote a letter to the Guardian about extending magistrates’ sentencing powers to 12 month. In this, she outlined how this would help free up the crown court capacity to deal with the most serious cases.
In April, Bev wrote an opinion piece in the Law Society Gazette on delays in the family court, urging the government to adopt a cross-agency approach to tackle the causes of delays throughout the family justice system.
In June, several media outlets, including the Independent and the Derbyshire Times, continued to feature our views on the single justice procedure. Our concerns about driving distances to court and the shortage of magistrates were also mentioned in The Times.
In July, our new Chief Executive Tom Franklin was interviewed by inews about the ‘pingdemic’ and its impact on justice. He said a long-term shortage of volunteer magistrates is being exacerbated by key personnel being ‘pinged’ to self-isolate, resulting in the closure of some courtrooms.
In August, Bev wrote an opinion piece in the Law Society Gazette about turning 18. In this, she shared the MA’s view that if an offence is committed before a young person’s 18th birthday, their case should be dealt with in youth court, even if they turn 18 before it comes to court.
In October, Bev had a letter published in the Guardian about the crown court backlog leading to delays in cases involving violence against women and girls, and how magistrates can help ease the pressure on the crown court.
