By Jemma Slingo2021-01-26T11:54:00+00:00
A range of new Covid measures are to be introduced at magistrates’ courts, as lawyers continue to flag ‘daily failings’ in safety standards.
HM Courts & Tribunals Service is to pilot a technique called ‘misting’ at around 60 magistrates’ courts nationwide, with a focus on London. This involves spraying surfaces with an antiviral disinfectant which settles and purportedly safeguards a single room for up to 28 days. The courts service said this will allow more people to use custody suites without compromising their safety.
TfL uses misting to disinfect its tube carriages
Source: Transport for London/Alamy Stock Photo
By Monidipa Fouzder2021-01-20T20:04:00+00:00
Lawyers and trade unions have joined forces to tell HM Courts & Tribunals Service boss Kevin Sadler to step up safety measures at court or face a ‘political, legal and industrial’ response.
The statement calling for action has been signed by the Criminal Bar Association, Criminal Law Solicitors’ Association, London Criminal Courts Solicitors’ Association, Solicitors’ Association of Higher Courts Advocates, Public and Commercial Services Union, FDA (a union representing Crown Prosecution Service prosecutors), National Association of Probation Officers and Family Courts, and Prison, Correctional and Secure Psychiatric Workers.
The bodies call for an immediate review of safety arrangements across the court estate amid growing concerns that the buildings are not, as HMCTS has repeatedly claimed, ‘Covid secure’.
Cardiff Magistrates Court hit by coronavirus outbreak
Delays are expected for at least 10 days
Cardiff Magistrates Court (Image: WalesOnline)
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Cardiff Magistrates Court has been forced to close some courtrooms following a coronavirus outbreak.
It comes after, what officials insist, is a small number of court users tested positive and a number of staff members are now self-isolating.
Last modified on Sun 10 Jan 2021 23.36 EST
Defendants, victims including teenagers, and witnesses are having to wait up to four years from the time of an alleged offence to the case reaching crown court trial because of delays caused mainly by Covid.
Lawyers, who are struggling to keep the criminal courts in England and Wales functioning through the pandemic, are calling for more socially-distanced, emergency courts to tackle the problem of justice being postponed.
They also blame past government cuts that closed hundreds of courts and restricted judges’ sitting days for the vast backlog. The latest, mutant strain of the coronavirus is likely to intensify pressure on the criminal justice system.