News Bulletin 2nd February, 2026
Constituency Courts Day 30th January 2026
Many thanks are due to all of the MPs who visited their local Crown Courts last Friday, to meet with barristers and to see first-hand the day-to-day work of our Crown Courts.
All around the country, from Swansea to Maidstone, and from Leeds to Inner London, MPs kindly gave up time from their busy constituency days to find out about the work of their Crown Courts. We are aware also of other MPs who have made their own arrangements to visit on other days over the past month. The Courts are an important public service and we hope that these arrangements can be repeated in years to come.
We are grateful to the many barristers who hosted the meetings, and to the Court staff who kindly helped facilitate them. The day was arranged jointly with the Bar Council, with Chair Kirsty Brimelow KC travelling to Leeds Crown Court to meet with three local MPs there.
Parliamentary Lobby Day – Tuesday 3rd February 2026 7.00pm–9.00pm.
This event provides a further opportunity for both MPs and members of the House of Lords to meet with criminal barristers to discuss the proposed reforms to the system of trial in the Crown Court. We are hoping for a strong turnout of barristers from a range of seniority, both from London and from the circuits.
Nikita Feifel, the Public Affairs Manager at the Bar Council, has a record of applications and invitations. If you have any queries about attending, please contact Nikita – [email protected].
Crown Court reform – Next Steps
We anticipate that further details of the proposed Crown Court reforms will emerge over the forthcoming weeks, beginning this week with Part 2 of Sir Brian Leveson’s Review of the Criminal Courts. Justice Ministers have said that we can expect to see all of the following published by the spring:
- Part 2 of the Review of the Criminal Courts (due this week)
- The government’s formal response to the Leveson Review
- Details of the government’ proposed legislation
- The Impact Assessments which are said to form the evidence in support of change
Both the CBA and the Bar Council have made our positions clear: we are opposed to fundamental changes to trial by jury, which will see an estimated 50% of current jury trial reallocated to Magistrates Courts and to the proposed Crown Court Bench Division (in whatever form). We are also opposed to the removal of the unqualified right to appeal against conviction from the Magistrates Courts.
However, there are many proposals within Part 1 of the Leveson Review which we positively support. Part 2 of the Leveson Review is focused on removing inefficiencies, and we are hopeful that we will find proposals within the report to address many of the concerns which criminal barristers have frequently raised.
We, as a profession, are not against reforms as long as they meet three touchstone tests:
- fairness;
- workability; and
- carrying public confidence.
Like all good lawyers, we will scrutinise the evidence with care.
We will give a considered response to each of these publications, and will use the Monday Message to communicate our views.
REMINDER – Write to Your MP
The MPs with whom we have met this week have emphasised the importance of writing to them and their colleagues to set out our concerns. Please forward your correspondence to [email protected], and [email protected], or email to confirm that you have written. This allows us to quantify numbers for use in our future representations.
For any new letter, the following resources are available:
- You can find out who your MP is, and how to contact them by email via Find your MP – MPs and Lords – UK Parliament
- The Template letter which you can adapt to suit your personal circumstances and experiences can be found here.
- The Briefing Note which you may wish to send with your letter can be found here.
PLEASE do CC in both
so that we can continue to collectively monitor numbers.
Criminal Justice Matters Podcast
Tomorrow (Tuesday) will see the launch of the latest Podcast in the Criminal Justice Matters series. Karl Turner MP – former criminal barrister, former Shadow Attorney General and Member of Parliament for Kingston upon Hull – is interviewed by Kate Bex KC and Simon Spence KC.
Karl is a stalwart Labour MP who broke ranks to vote against the government in the recent debate on the reform of jury trials. It is an entertaining interview in which Karl explains what has led a loyal friend of both Keir Starmer and David Lammy to become a vocal opponent of the MoJ’s proposals.
The podcast will be available on the CBA website and on both Spotify and Apple Podcasts. The last episode, featuring an interview with the Secret Barrister, is still available here.
[The CBA do not hold any political affiliations. We engage with MPs and Peers of all parties on issues concerning the Criminal Justice System. The Criminal Justice Matters podcast is published by the CBA but the views of contributors are their own].
New Silks – Addendum
Following our recent celebration of the criminal barristers appointed as King’s Counsel in the 2025/26 competition, it has come to our attention that two notable names were omitted from our initial roll of honour. We wish to remedy that oversight now by extending our warmest, if slightly delayed, congratulations to Anna Pope and Matthew Donkin.
Based in Chester, Anna is a prominent member of both the Wales and Chester and the Northern circuits. Her elevation to silk follows an exceptional period in her career, during which she was twice nominated by the Legal 500 as Crime Junior of the Year. Her appointment is a testament to her consistent excellence in the field and her tireless commitment to her clients.
A mainstay of the North Eastern Circuit, Matthew has long been regarded as a formidable advocate of the highest calibre. His transition to silk marks a significant milestone in his professional journey, reflecting his profound expertise in navigating the complexities of high-level criminal litigation. His reputation for meticulous preparation and persuasive advocacy makes this a most well-merited distinction.
We are delighted to see such talent recognised at the highest level of the profession. Our sincere congratulations go to both Anna and Matthew on their well-deserved success.
Assistant Secretary of the CBA
Nominations are still open for the position of Assistant Secretary of the Criminal Bar Association.
Candidates must be members of the CBA and be proposed and seconded, in writing or by email, by CBA members.
An expression of interest, together with the names of the proposer and seconder, should be submitted to the CBA Administrator, Aaron Dolan, at [email protected] by 4.00pm on Wednesday 4th February 2026.
This is a two-year commitment. The successful candidate will serve as Assistant Secretary for 12 months, then as Secretary for 12 months. Further details were set out in the Monday Message on 19.01.2026 which can be found on the website.
Do you have experience of using Common Platform?
The Institute for Government (‘IFG’) is a non-partisan think tank which conducts research into UK government effectiveness. It is conducting a review of digital transformation in public services.
They are investigating the rollout of four digital systems by HM Government, including the launch by HMCTS of the Common Platform. Their project will look at what went right and what went wrong with these programmes and identify lessons for future success.
The IFG are holding a workshop for people working in frontline roles during these digital transformation projects from 10.30-12.30 on Wednesday 25th February 2026. There will be refreshments available from 10:00 and lunch will be provided after the workshop. Reasonable travel expenses will be reimbursed.
The IFG would like to find a barrister or solicitor to participate in their discussions. This would be someone who was regularly working in the Magistrates Court at the time of the rollout, which was regionally phased in between 2020 and 2023.
If you have experience of using Common Platform during the rollout period and you are willing to share your views, please contact Aaron – [email protected]
You can find out more about the IFG here.
Remuneration Update
Over the past week, the CBA Chair and Vice Chair have had further meetings with the MoJ and CPS over both AGFS and CPS graduated fees. We are advocating both for a general increase and at targeted increases for certain hearings. These are separate schemes with separate considerations but it is hoped to make progress on both together, in line with the CPS’ commitment to achieve broad parity on prosecution and defence fees.
We have stressed that the hoped-for changes to the two schemes cannot await the implementation of the recommendations of the Leveson Review, many of which are likely to take several years to come into effect.
Bar Council Working Group on Age of Criminal Responsibility
CBA Chair Riel Karmy-Jones KC has met this week with the working group set up by Kirsty Brimelow KC to review the arguments for increasing the age of criminal responsibility in England and Wales. The age limit is currently 10 years, which is the lowest in Europe.
Kirsty has identified this campaign as one of her key priorities for her tenure as Bar Council chair. The CBA will continue to support the Bar Council in this important work.
Commissioner for Conduct – Dame Maria Miller DBE
On Tuesday 27th January, CBA Chair Riel Karmy-Jones KC met with Dame Maria Miller DBE, the Bar Council’s newly-appointed Commissioner for Conduct, to discuss the implementation of the recommendations in the Harman Review.
“Trial and Error” – Theatre comes to the Old Bailey – 15th to 19th March 2026
For 5 evenings this March, Court 1 at the Central Criminal Court will be transformed into a theatre. Judges, barristers and others will be taking to the stage in an evening of entertainment revolving around a theme of past trials, many of which took place at the Old Bailey.
Further details of the performances and how to get tickets can be found on the CBA website here.
Based on previous years, tickets will sell out fast.
All proceeds go to three charities, the Sheriffs’ and Recorders Fund, the MamaSuze Community Interest Company and the Schools Consent project.
And finally…
Many of you will have seen the letter from Sir John Royce to The Times last week, responding to the obituary to the late Mr Justice John Blofeld, who died late last year. It is worth repeating for those who missed it.
Blofeld J’s father, Thomas Blofeld, had been a pupil at Eton with the author Ian Fleming in the 1920s. Fleming borrowed the surname for his character Ernst Blofeld, the criminal mastermind who headed the SPECTRE organisation.
Sir John wrote:
“When Mr Justice Blofeld first sat in Winchester a barrister called Richard Bond stood up to open the first case. Mr Justice Blofeld began to stroke the white ermine on the sleeve of his High Court judge’s robes as if stroking a cat. “He then said with a smile: ‘We meet at last, Mr Bond’.”
Yours,
Riel
Riel Karmy-Jones KC Andrew Thomas KC
Chair Vice-Chair
The Criminal Bar Association The Criminal Bar Association