Yasmin Qureshi MP Bolton speaks against jury trials cuts

Yasmin Qureshi MP, who represents the Bolton South and Walkden constituency, has previously spoken out against the Courts and Tribunals Bill, which proposes to reduce the number of jury trials, alongside other reforms.

It would see cases with a likely sentence of three years or less being heard by a single crown court judge, and magistrates’ courts taking on cases with a likely sentence of up to two years.

Justice Secretary, David Lammy, says that the measures are being taken to reduce the court backlog.

But critics of the bill say that jury trials are a “fundamental part of our constitutional system”.

MPs voted on the bill this evening, March 10, but a debate on it was held beforehand.

Yasmin Qureshi MP speaking in the House of Commons today (Image: Parliament TV)

Speaking during the debate, Ms Qureshi said: “A substantial part of my career as a prosecutor was spent as a designated child and sexual abuse specialist and rape specialist.

“I worked closely with victims, witnesses and families affected by these traumatic offences.

“If I believed that the abolition of jury trials would generally allow these cases to be heard more quickly, I would support it, but I don’t.”

She added: “There are real reforms that could be done which could address the delay.

“The first and foremost is the Labour Party’s commitment to have specialist rape courts, properly funded, and I know that lawyers and judges will be prepared to sit weekends to tackle those cases through.”

But she added that she supported other parts of the bill, including “the investment in legal aid, the additional sitting days and the funding for our courts”.

Criticism came from other perspectives, including that of Warrington North MP Charlotte Nichols, who accused David Lammy of using victims as a “cudgel” to drive through reforms to the court system, speaking of her own experience of being raped.

She said: “In this debate, experiences like mine feel like they’ve been weaponised and are being used for rhetorical misdirection, for what this bill actually is.”

She added: “There is so much that we can be doing for rape victims that isn’t the Lord Chancellor using them as a cudgel to drive through reforms that aren’t directly relevant to them.”

The draft bill was voted through by 304 votes to 203.

Bolton MPs Phil Brickell and Kirith Entwistle voted for it, while Ms Qureshi abstained.