Court backlog hampering justice, says police chief

Criminal cases involving violence against women and girls should be dealt with within two weeks, a police force's chief constable has said.

Jason Hogg, Thames Valley Police's (TVP) most senior officer, said the "main issue" in resolving cases over recent years has been the criminal justice system's backlog.

He said some females could be waiting until 2027 for their case to go to trial and called for more investment to cut delays.

A Ministry of Justice (MoJ) spokesperson said it was "clear there are many cases taking far too long" to get to that stage.

The government said in March that violence against women and girls was "unacceptably high", with Femicide Census finding that since 2010, on average, a woman has been killed by a man in the UK every three days.

Jess Phillips, the government's minister for safeguarding and violence against women and girls, said that its target to halve violence against females in a decade "is not an abstract goal – it is a top priority".

Mr Hogg told a panel of Oxfordshire councillors it could be "difficult" getting cases to court in the first place.

"But the main issue is the time it's taking to get to court and the criminal justice backlog," he said.

"[Police and prosecutors are] actually doing pretty well and, this is all relative, but a case going to crown court, it's going to be [heard in] 2027."

He added: "Witness care units need to keep those victims engaged for what could be a couple of years.

"Sexual offences, the judges try to prioritise but there's not enough judges, not enough barristers, not enough court space.

"If the government wants to tackle violence against women and girls and halve it, we need to get cases charged quickly and in court in two weeks.

"It needs an investment in the criminal justice system."

The MoJ's spokesperson said: "We know that justice delayed is justice denied and it is clear there are many cases taking far too long to go to trial.

"That's why we've asked Sir Brian Leveson to propose once-in-a-generation reform to address the outstanding backlog in our courts.

"Alongside this we're also providing funding for a record level of sitting days this financial year, raising national court capacity to deliver swifter justice for victims."

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