Member

Currently, magistrates send cases to the Crown court on only two narrow grounds: that the sentencing will be more than they have the power to impose, or that the case is too complex. The Justice Committee warned that that was not enough and is too inflexible. Let me give just three examples of what might lead magistrates to consider it just to send cases to the Crown court: cases where the defendant is of good character, with no previous convictions; where their conviction would potentially pose exceptional hardship to others, such as a single parent, as custody would force their children into care; or where victims have justifiable reasons for wanting a jury trial. In cases such as those, limited and rigid rules fall short. That is why I have tabled amendment 69, which would grant the magistrates court a more flexible discretion to send a case to the Crown court whenever the interests of justice demand it. We should trust our magistrates with that judgment.