Current and former Magistrates Association leaders questioned on adult custodial remand
8 July 2022
The Justice Committee will question the Chief Executive and former Chair of the Magistrates Association about the role of adult custodial remand, where defendants are held in custody before their court hearings have concluded.
- Watch Parliament TV: The role of adult custodial remand in the criminal justice system
- Inquiry: The role of adult custodial remand in the criminal justice system
- Justice Committee
MPs will examine magistrates’ powers in relation to remanding defendants in custody and the information they consider before making their decisions. The witnesses may be asked whether magistrates take into account how many weeks or months an individual can expect to wait before their case is heard, or the effect that placing them in custody could have on their family.
There will also be questions about the alternatives to custodial remand that are available, the impact of video links in hearings, and the communication of magistrates’ court decisions.
The cross-party Committee may also ask whether the Government’s proposal to increase magistrates’ sentencing powers could lead to an increase in the number of defendants held on remand.
There has been a significant rise in the number of defendants placed on custodial remand whilst awaiting trial. At the end of December 2021, the remand population was 12,780, the second highest quarterly figure since 2011. In March 2021, a third of remand prisoners were held beyond the legal limit ahead of trial. Placing prisoners on remand contributes to overcrowding and declining conditions in prisons.
On Tuesday 5 July the Committee questioned Professor Anthea Hucklesby, Professor of Criminal Justice and Head of the School of Social Policy, University of Birmingham; Peter Dawson, Director, Prison Reform Trust; and Penelope Gibbs, Director, Transform Justice. You can watch a recording of the session here.
You can read the terms of reference for this inquiry here.
Witnesses
Tuesday 12 July
At 2.30pm
- John Bache, Former Chair, Magistrates Association
- Tom Franklin, Chief Executive, Magistrates Association
Further information
Image: UK Parliament/Gabriel Sainhas