The Ministry of Justice appears to be testing the criminal bar’s patience as it emerged that the final part of a deal struck last year to suspend long-running industrial action has yet to materialise.
In her latest weekly update, Criminal Bar Association chair Kirsty Brimelow KC said the final part of the deal for payment for special preparation and wasted preparation should have been brought into force last month.
‘It seemed a long way off in October 2022, didn’t it? But here we are and, as I informed the CBA executive and the heads of chambers’ meeting this week, the statutory instrument has not been brought into force, nor laid. This is a breach of the deal under which the action of the criminal bar is suspended,’ she said.
Justice minister Mike Freer told Brimelow last week that he was working hard to finalise the policy and lay a statutory instrument ‘within a few weeks’.
Brimelow said in her update that the government has had five months ‘and holding up your side of the bargain is not complex’.
She said: ‘In summary, the Ministry of Justice officials raise a possibility (and all things may well be possible) that there will be overspend of the £3.3m committed to this part of the deal. We have pointed out to the MoJ that it has a history of modelling which produces inflated figures. This reality gap needs again to be pinched as it widens between assumption and practice and failure to do justice to understanding as set out in [the criminal legal aid review].’
For example, the ministry estimated a ‘steady state’ expenditure of £4m-£11m on a legal aid reform regarding unused material that was implemented prior to the Bellamy review. Actual expenditure from April 2021-March 2022 was £1.97m.
Brimelow said: ‘It is false economy to create blocks at this stage when the government should be doing all it can to attract and retain barristers. Government should be sensitive to any action that could push a fresh exodus from the criminal bar.’
Asked if the CBA has given ministers a deadline and whether members will be balloted on resuming industrial action should the deadline not be met, a CBA spokesperson declined to comment.
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