Latest news with #LordHermer
Telegraph
a day ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Criminal justice in ‘state of national emergency', Lord Hermer told
The criminal justice system is in a 'state of national emergency' and needs urgent action to clear backlogs, Lord Hermer has been told. Anthony Rogers, the chief inspector of the prosecution service, wrote to the Attorney General saying that far-reaching proposals to scrap jury trials for thousands of defendants would take time to introduce, and radical solutions were needed right away. 'The criminal justice system is in a state of national emergency and delays are unsustainable,' said Mr Rogers, who is the watchdog for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) and reports to Lord Hermer. He backed the proposals made in the independent review by Sir Brian Leveson, the former appeal court judge, to scale back jury trials. But Mr Rogers warned: 'They will take time to implement and will not address the immediate issue as backlogs continue to increase daily as more cases are received than finalised.' Crown court backlogs have hit a record 76,000 cases, with some current victims told they will have to wait until 2029 before their perpetrator is brought to trial. The Telegraph understands that Mr Rogers is proposing that senior judges should give priority to the most serious cases when listing them for trial in crown courts. This is likely to entail new fast-track lists, running in parallel to cases that are taking as long as four years to come to trial. Mr Rogers warned those in the legal profession opposed to the removal of jury trials risked extending the crisis in the courts. 'Calls from the legal profession to maintain the status quo and throw more money at the problem are unhelpful. It does nothing to solve the serious issues at hand,' he said. 'Everyone needs to recognise that if we don't move to act now all will be lost. Holding on to long established principles and resisting change and innovation will further diminish the system that so many rely on. 'The world is a far different place post austerity and Covid, and all actors in the criminal justice system – from Government and judiciary to the Bar – need to implement radical solutions today, or our great legal system will no longer be the envy of the world.' Defendants to lose right to jury trial In his report, Sir Brian proposed that suspected sex offenders and drug dealers should be among thousands of defendants stripped of the right to a jury trial. Under plans for a 'once in a generation' reform of the courts, his review recommended that defendants accused of 220 offences should no longer have an automatic right to be tried by a jury of their peers. Sir Brian said restricting the historical right to a jury trial – which has its origins in the 1215 Magna Carta – was necessary because criminal justice was 'too broken' and a 'radical and essential package of measures to prevent total collapse of the system' was required. He said ditching juries would mean simpler, speedier and cheaper justice, saving the equivalent of 9,000 court sitting days a year. His report comes as the backlog of Crown Court cases has risen to a record 77,000, with trials delayed as far ahead as 2029. In his annual report, the chief inspector said inspections of the CPS had revealed a 'concerning level' of geographical variation. Further work was being done in the hope of finding why the quality of decision-making was significantly worse in some parts of England and Wales than in others. However, Mr Rogers welcomed Lord Hermer securing £39m to help the Serious Fraud Office recruit staff to deal effectively with the prosecutor's disclosure obligations.
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
How Lord Hermer's staff racked up a £1.2MILLION work from home bill
More than £1million has been spent on work from home equipment by government departments that report to Attorney General Lord Hermer. The Government Legal Department, the Crown Prosecution Service and the Serious Fraud Office have spent more than £1.24million in the last three years on computers, desks and other equipment to enable remote work. Overall, agencies in eight departments have spent nearly £3million on similar equipment, despite ministers saying they want to see more people working in the office. The figures were revealed in response to parliamentary questions from a Tory MP. TaxPayers' Alliance spokesman Shimeon Lee urged ministers to 'get a grip and put the public back at the heart of public service'. He told The Sunday Telegraph: 'Taxpayers will be dismayed to know that we are still investing in a work from home culture. 'Remote working has become the norm in the public sector, with little regard for productivity, accountability or value for money.' Energy minister Miatta Fahnbulleh said the spending 'reflected an increased headcount to deliver additional remit for government priorities and steps to reduce its London office footprint to save money.' Other work-from-home highrollers included the Health and Safety Executive, a public body sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions, which spent £955,099, and Ofgem, energy regulator in Labour's Net Zero department, at £396,486. Lord Hermer is a former barrister and a friend of Sir Keir Starmer. He was handed a peerage and was parachuted in to the high-profile role after the election. But some Downing Street aides are reported to be pressing for his removal as part of an autumn relaunch. He is said to be a key figure in the controversial deal to surrender the Chagos Islands, the decision to repeal laws protecting British veterans of the Northern Ireland Troubles from prosecution and the Government's refusal to help defend Israel during the conflict with Iran. Last month Lord Hermer rubbished claims of a 'two-tier' justice system in Britain as 'disgusting' and 'wrong'. Such accusations arose following last summer's riots after the Southport murders were policed more strongly and the early release of prisoners to tackle overcrowding. Lord Hermer said: 'What some people were seeking to do, bringing up 'two-tier', was to make a comparison with the way people were being treated for trying to kill police officers – and I want to reiterate that, kill police officers – with the response to protests on the streets of London. We don't have a two-tiered justice system.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Aides urge the Prime Minister to axe 'meddling' law chief in autumn reshuffle
Attorney General Lord Hermer should be sacked in the next Cabinet reshuffle because he has become a liability to the Government, senior No 10 aides believe. Lord Hermer – parachuted into his plum job as the country's most senior law officer at the insistence of his friend Sir Keir Starmer – has infuriated the Prime Minister's officials with his 'meddling'. He has attempted to limit the scope of Britain's military involvements in the Middle East and granted himself an effective 'veto' over Government decisions. Earlier this year he was forced to apologise for comparing calls to quit the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR) with the early days of Nazi Germany. It comes as Sir Keir is planning a 'summer shore-up' operation by restructuring No 10 and planning for a reshuffle in the autumn after a bruising first year in power. Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy and Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson are also at risk in the reshuffle. A source said of Lord Hermer, who was also instrumental in the decision to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius: 'They bloody hate him in here [No 10]. Lord Hermer – parachuted into his plum job as the country's most senior law officer at the insistence of his friend Sir Keir Starmer (pictured) – has infuriated the Prime Minister's officials with his 'meddling' 'It seems there is no problem which can't be made worse by a human rights barrister whose name ends in "mer". The question is whether Keir will protect him.' Ministers have pleaded with MPs who expect to serve only one term in the Commons to stop rebelling. At a meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party last Monday Health Secretary Wes Streeting urged them not to write off their seats – saying he had shown it is possible to win against the odds. A source in the room said he told MPs: 'I've heard some Labour MPs saying they're only going to be a one-term MP. 'Take it from me, someone who bucked the trend to win a marginal seat off the Tories in 2015, bucked the trend in 2017, 2019, and then bucked the trend in the other direction in 2024, there's a long way to go.' Last summer Mr Streeting narrowly managed to hold on to his seat of Ilford North by 528 votes. New polling has shown Labour's decision to give the vote to 16 and 17-year-olds puts him at risk of wipeout at the next election. The Health Secretary's pep talk came after another Cabinet minister told the MoS it is 'not on' that Labour MPs are assuming they will only be there for one term, and can therefore do what they like – as they praised 'necessary' action over welfare rebels. 'It's becoming a nightmare for the whips,' the source said. Another added: 'They can see the polls, and know they only managed to get in last year in a landslide.' A Labour MP furious with rebel colleagues said: 'We were elected on a Labour banner. We are there for the team, it is not about us. 'If you have issues with the leadership, you deal with them internally. You have to respect party discipline.' As part of his 'summer shore-up' Sir Keir is said to be planning to create a 'Department for Downing Street', which would see a senior civil servant appointed to a lead role and with other officials drafted in to try to improve the Prime Minister's ability to 'drive through change' in Whitehall. It has left Sir Keir open to accusations of 'Presidential' delusions.
Telegraph
3 days ago
- Business
- Telegraph
Lord Hermer's departments spent £1m to help staff work from home
Government departments headed by Lord Hermer, the Attorney General, have spent more than £1m on equipment to enable their staff to work from home, figures reveal. The information, released by the Attorney General's Office in response to parliamentary questions tabled by a former Tory cabinet minister, show that the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the Government Legal Department (GLD), and the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) spent at least £1.24m over the past three years on remote-working equipment. As a whole, government agencies linked to seven Whitehall departments have spent around £3m on monitors, desks and other equipment, despite a ministerial push for public sector workers to return to the office. Other big spenders included the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) – a public body sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions – which spent £955,099 since 2022/23. Lord Hermer has been in charge of the legal departments since being appointed when Labour took power last July, and the figures also cover the previous two years of Tory government. Sir Stephen Timms, the social security minister, claimed the high cost of remote-working equipment 'mainly relates to provision of equipment for new starters, and HSE has increased its staff numbers in this period mainly due to becoming the building safety regulator'. Shimeon Lee, a policy analyst at the TaxPayers' Alliance, told The Telegraph: 'Taxpayers will be dismayed to know that we are still investing in a work from home culture. Remote working has become the norm in the public sector, with little regard for productivity, accountability or value for money. 'While families grapple with squeezed services and sky-high taxes, officials are kitting out home offices at their expense. Ministers must get a grip and put the public back at the heart of public service.' The figures were revealed in a series of written parliamentary questions tabled by Sir John Hayes, a former Tory Cabinet minister. Sir John Hayes, the former minister who tabled the questions, told The Telegraph: 'Productivity has dipped in recent times and never recovered to its pre-Covid levels. It's probably the greatest macroeconomic challenge facing this Government. Unless it improves, it will stymie economic performance. 'The assumption that if you spend more and put more people into systems, you will get better outputs, ignores how productive they are. Remote working will further limit productivity and may make things worse. 'People work best when they are with others. The interactions between individuals inspire creativity and productivity. To deny that is to deny the fundamentals of effective working.' Whitehall has set 60pc office working minimum Last year, Whitehall chiefs agreed that 60 per cent office attendance – three days a week – was the minimum expected of staff. Many public bodies, including the CPS and Ofgem, only have a 40 per cent, or two days a week, requirement to work from an official building. Meanwhile, Ofgem, the UK's independent energy regulator, spent £396,486.26 on equipment to help staff work from home. Last year, The Telegraph revealed that the regulator was paying £3.5m a year for its luxury Canary Wharf offices despite seven out of eight of its employees working from home on a typical day. Miatta Fahnbulleh, the energy minister, said the total spent on working from home equipment for government departments 'reflected an increased headcount to deliver additional remit for key government priorities, and steps to reduce its London office footprint to save money'.
Telegraph
7 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Starmer is sacrificing our troops on the altar of human rights law
Soldiers are known for marching, either in ceremonial array or drilling for battle, but they wouldn't normally be seen dead on a 'march'. They leave the protests to civilians. But things are not normal, alarmingly far from normal in fact, so here we all are. The Northern Ireland veterans who gathered in Parliament Square on Monday feel they are under attack from their own Government. Threatened repeal of the Legacy Act once again opens up the prospect of men in their 70s being prosecuted – I typed 'persecuted' which is nearer the mark – for serving Queen and country in Operation Banner over 40 years ago. It was a glorious afternoon in central London, but the threat of vindictive 'lawfare' cast a long shadow over the old boys, their faces etched with betrayal. Now, they came together for one last battle. In brief, the Government now claims that the Legacy Act, introduced by the Conservatives to draw a line under vexatious cases against military personnel, is 'unlawful' – incompatible with various articles of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), according to the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal. There is no obligation for Parliament to make amends to the Act. The move to do so appears to come from the Attorney General, Lord Hermer, and his commitment to adhere to international law at any cost, no matter if the British Parliament ends up shafting our own people. (Lord Hermer probably thinks it's 'far-Right' to even suggest there is such a thing as 'our own people'). Just to add insult to so many horrific, lifelong injuries, repealing the Act would open the door to compensation for hundreds of suspected Republicans who were imprisoned, including the former Sinn Fein leader, potentially totalling many millions of taxpayer-funded pounds. Gerry Adams, who is facing claims in the High Court that he sat on the IRA Army Council when it directed three terrorist attacks in England, was formerly represented in this case by – *checks notes* – Attorney General Lord Hermer. Don't worry, folks, I'm sure having had the now senior legal advisor to the Crown help Gerry Adams is no biggie. Unlike international human rights experts, British soldiers tend to be straightforward, patriotic souls: they prefer the fog of war to the bog of law. At least in war the enemy is clearly on the other side. What side are Sir Keir Starmer, Lord Hermer and the Labour Government on? Chatting to groups of comrades from the Parachute Regiment, Royal Artillery and Fusiliers, I was left in no doubt as to what they think. The mood towards the Prime Minster and Attorney General can best be summed up in two words: Fix bayonets. It is this latest, and perhaps worst, example of Starmer's two-tier justice that is causing so much resentment. A public petition was signed by over 175,000 people who feel strongly that those who served this country should not be treated worse than the murderers they defeated. The veterans were assembled for the debate in Westminster Hall, which that petition triggered. 'They let hundreds of IRA terrorists off, and we're being prosecuted for doing our job,' says Paul, who did 10 tours of Northern Ireland with the Parachute Regiment. 'It's a double standard. They want a fall guy, they want to put a Para inside – they're appeasing the terrorists.' 'It's revenge for Bloody Sunday,' his mate Jonno chips in. 'There have been so many investigations over the years and everyone was cleared. How many times do we have to be put through this?' Dave, the third member of the trio, impeccable in their bemedalled blazers and berets, reckons it all dates back to Starmer's visit to Stormont shortly after his general election victory last July. 'It's political,' he says curtly. 'The Labour Party is giving Sinn Fein what they want. They're out to get a scapegoat, and they won't stop until they get someone.' In what other profession are former junior employees held to account for their actions, threatened with imprisonment and judged according to entirely different standards almost half a century later? Not the law or politics, that's for sure. Paul, Jonno and Dave were scared kids when they were first posted to Northern Ireland. 'We were 17, 18 years old.' It was 1981, and the IRA hunger strikes were going on. There were months of riots, shootings and bombings, and the wet-behind-the-ears recruits had to deal with the uneasy ordeal of being hated and under attack on British soil. 'You didn't sleep for six weeks – just on constant duty,' Paul recalls. He says they grabbed what rest they could in the back of a bus in Andersonstown in west Belfast. 'I slept in a garden,' Jonno grimaces. They had a yellow card with strict rules for opening fire. 'We always had to give a warning – three warnings,' says Dave. ''Army! Stop or I'll fire!' If they were running away you couldn't engage them.' 'The terrorists didn't have any rules,' says Paul bitterly. No, they did not. Lest we forget, the IRA murdered 700 British soldiers (319 RUC officers lost their lives), and under Tony Blair's Good Friday Agreement they were granted immunity. So-called 'letters of comfort' protected terrorists from future prosecution. It was a bitter pill to swallow, but it was bearable as long as there was fairness. 'If you're giving amnesty to the enemy, why wouldn't you do the same for our soldiers? It's contemptible,' says Col Nick Kitson (DSO) who served with the British Army in Northern Ireland, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and is a former 22 SAS Commander. A decorated war hero, suave, silver fox Col Kitson was part of a formidable group of SAS veterans at Westminster on Monday. You can tell things are very grave indeed when our Special Forces break cover. They were there because they can see how European human rights law is 'making good guys the bad guys', and putting national security in peril. Others in the group included George Simm, redoubtable Geordie, former regimental sergeant major of the SAS and my new favourite human. Put it this way, when the next English civil war breaks out, I'm going to be wherever George is, cowering behind his mighty, reassuring form. I've promised I'll make the sandwiches. Also striding across the road to the debate in Westminster Hall was Falklands War legend Aldwin Wight, commanding officer of 22 SAS from 1992 to 1994. Brigadier Wight wrote an excoriating open missive (missile, I should say) back in May, in which he took aim at a spineless establishment that is woefully ignorant of the extreme circumstances soldiers face in the line of fire. 'The trust between veterans and their former employer, the Government, is broken,' he thundered, pointing out the absurdity of a situation where 'the employer, the Government, gives funds to lawyers to take out cases against the soldiers that work for the Government.' An equally incredulous George Simm reports that the SAS sought legal advice and was told that Northern Ireland soldiers cannot benefit from human rights legislation that assists terrorists. In practice, this keeps the lawyers' gravy train (a richly-upholstered Orient Express rather than a Standard-class puffer) chugging along. George gave me an example of one SAS mission in Afghanistan. The objective was to extract a notorious bombmaker alive. The Regiment took pains to protect innocent people, putting themselves at greater risk, but there was 'a mad firefight in the dark, bullets zinging everywhere', and the bombmaker was killed. 'Investigators at the time found that what happened was reasonable in the context. However, years later, lawyers encouraged Afghan families to bring a prosecution, telling them they had a case under ECHR laws.' In other words, British human rights lawyers are actively touting for business among our enemies in order to enrich themselves and to hell with our armed forces. I call that treason. It's hard to think of any other country which would engage in such a wicked act of self-harm. Still, it seemed to get a thumbs up from Lord Hermer when he praised the disgraced solicitor Phil Shiner whose claims of war crimes by British soldiers were rejected by the High Court. In March 2015, when Shiner was placed under investigation by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) after a judge said that his claims of soldier wrongdoing were 'deliberate lies, reckless speculation and ingrained hostility', Hermer enthused at a legal event that 'Phil has caused the Government a great deal of aggravation over the last 15 years. He's brought successfully some extraordinarily important cases that have exposed systemic use of torture, for example, by the British Army in Iraq.' (Allies of Hermer have pointed out that he subsequently condemned Shiner for his reprehensible behaviour.) With people in charge who revel in the shaming of our Army – with a few grim exceptions, one of the most honourable in the world – is it any wonder that the forces face a recruitment crisis? What parents are going to allow their son or daughter to sign up when they might face prosecution for simply doing their duty? So far, as Justice for Veterans points out, the Government is repealing an Act which is the only thing which gives soldiers protection, leaving them with anxiety and uncertainty. The campaign group is calling for an act that protects soldiers from the legal gravy train and vexatious pursuit. And for the Law of Armed Conflict (LOAC) and International humanitarian law to supersede the Human Rights Act as the guiding principles for the 'rules of engagement'. Hear, hear, say the British people. The human rights of terrorists must not be allowed to hold our brave soldiers to ransom. As David Davis MP said later in a thrillingly good speech at the debate, 'The Prime Minister dismissed it as 'political point scoring'. He is wrong; it is a matter of justice, a matter of ensuring that those who risked their lives to protect our citizens during the Troubles know that the state stands behind them… Getting this right is not just a matter of historical justice. The legal witch hunt will not end in Northern Ireland; it will cast a shadow over every future conflict.' The soldier sitting next to me was clearly moved, but refused to cry. He turned to me and said, 'Normally, we wouldn't wear berets indoors, but we want them to know who we are.' Oh, they know who you are, and we won't let them forget you. One last thought. As a nation, we don't have many areas of expertise, bordering on genius, left. Acting is one, the SAS is another. Internationally renowned, relied upon and trusted in a way Starmer's far-Left Government could never be, the threat to the Special Forces is now ringing alarm bells amongst our allies. I am told the US is appalled by what is happening to the SAS: Generals Mike Flynn and Stan McChrystal have both expressed their concerns. It is outrageous that the Government is seeking to create some sort of moral equivalence between IRA killers and the SAS heroes who outwitted them, fighting with almost superhuman resourcefulness and courage. All the bombs that didn't go off, all those who might have died but who lived to tell the tale. We will never know what we owe them, but gratitude is the very least of it. Labour has upset the farmers, the fishermen, the pensioners, the disabled, the small business people, the rich, the oil and steelworkers… Well, this time, they picked a fight with giants.
