Justice plans ‘could save £70m’

A report by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) has indicated that pooling resources between agencies in the criminal justice system could save £70 million across England and Wales.

Under the current system, the HMIC revealed that more than 1,000 steps, including 70 processes where it was difficult to make progress without obtaining information from another agency, were needed to deal with simple criminal cases like domestic burglary.

The body believes that the bureaucracy stems from the fact that no single agency or person was in charge, so no one authority could authorise change, promise delivery and be held to account.

With spending by agencies in the criminal justice system (CJS) costing approximately £23 billion in 2008/09, the HMIC believes that pooling resources between agencies could save £70 million, but the scale of the challenge should not be underestimated.

Inspector Dru Sharpling added that, as all justice agencies face cuts over the next four years, "there is no 'silver bullet' that will deal with these problems overnight" but opportunities to "improve justice while reducing cost and bureaucracy" must be taken.

"The budget cuts create an imperative to tackle this now," she added.

At IBB Solicitors we have one of the leading teams of criminal specialists in West London and the South East. If you are facing a serious criminal charge, you can contact a member of the IBB's Criminal Defence team, call us on 08456 381 381 or email enquiries@ibblaw.co.uk.