Failure to Transform the Criminal Justice System
That this Assembly expresses concern that the Criminal Justice Inspection Northern Ireland (CJINI) report, Transforming the Criminal Justice System in Northern Ireland: A Strategic Overview, published in November 2024, found limited improvement in performance, or the experience of victims, witnesses and staff, since the devolution of policing and justice; is alarmed that this outcome was reported despite numerous strategies and policy development; notes, in particular, the increasing need to tackle the factors that contribute to delay, including long police investigations, slow prosecutorial decision-making and cases not ready to proceed at court; further notes that delay may have the perverse effect of allowing alleged serious offenders, ordinarily held on remand for the purposes of public protection, to develop a strong claim for bail, or for those remanded to be released for time served at the time of sentencing; highlights the negative impact this has on victims and wider public confidence in the criminal justice system; believes transformational change must be system-wide, rather than the product of many, often disparate, strategies or workstreams; and calls on the Minister of Justice, more than nine months on from the CJINI recommendations, to outline her action plan and timeline to reach agreement with members of the Criminal Justice Board on a shared future vision and aligned strategic priorities for improving the effectiveness of the criminal justice system without further delay.
Private Members' Motion
23/09/2025
23/09/2025
06/10/2025
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