Priti Patel rattles the handcuffs – but the Tories have lost control of law and order | Polly Toynbee
In the tsunami of post-2010 cuts to the Ministry of Justice, half the crown courts and magistrates courts were closed down and sold off. The government says most people can reach a court within a six-hour round trip, but unsurprisingly many are failing to attend, so those showing up find cases postponed and themselves obliged to make that journey again. Added to the loss of courtrooms is an acute shortage of judges, recorders, clerks, staff and duty solicitors following £1bn in legal aid cuts. âYour letter made a mistake,â complained one client to Richard Atkinson, a solicitor in...
Source: theguardian.com