UK government scraps mandatory criminal court charge

The UK government has announced its intention to scrap the mandatory criminal courts charge, introduced in April earlier this year forcing adult offenders to contribute towards the costs of their cases. The charge was applied to criminal courts in England and Wales and was levied on any defendant who pleaded guilty or was convicted, in addition to the victims’ surcharge, prosecution costs and fines already in force. The charge started at £150 when pleading guilty before the Magistrates court and could rise as to as high as £1,200 for those found guilty at the Crown court. The charge was not means tested and often resulted in the actual punishment for minor crimes being grossly disproportionate when set against the charge.

The imposition of the criminal charge prompted strong criticism from many civil society groups, legal experts, politicians and sitting judges and magistrates, alleging it was “incompatible with the principles of justice” and created a strong financial disincentive to contest criminal charges and risk the uncertainty of a jury trial. More than 100 magistrates resigned in protest over the charge as they were concerned it constituted an injustice within the criminal justice system. The announcement by Justice Secretary Michael Gove was welcomed by those who had campaigned against it, including the Magistrates Association, the Howard League for Penal Reform, the Criminal Justice Alliance and the House of Commons Justice Select Committee. All of those who argued against the charge cited the implications it created for fairness and the perception of the administration of justice.

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