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Ford announces statutory time limits

Justice Minister David Ford today announced radical measures to speed up the justice system in Northern Ireland.
~ Monday, 6 February 2012

A fundamental change on this scale cannot happen overnight and by committing to the introduction of statutory time limits within the lifetime of this Assembly

Minister of Justice David Ford MLA,Northern Ireland Department of Justice

In a statement (PDF 18 KB) to Assembly the Minister informed Members that he plans to overhaul the current process of bringing cases before court by introducing statutory time limits to tackle delays in the justice system.  Initially these will apply to cases before the Youth Court and will be operational within the lifetime of this Assembly.

David Ford said: “Soon after becoming Justice Minister I committed to speeding up our criminal justice system.

“We have introduced a number of changes to tackle the problem of delay, but important as they are, I am not satisfied with the level of progress made.

“I am therefore moving ahead with the introduction of statutory time limits to speed up the justice system in Northern Ireland.”

The Minister accepted that it will take time for the agencies in the justice system to make the necessary changes to deliver this objective.

He said: “A fundamental change on this scale cannot happen overnight and by committing to the introduction of statutory time limits within the lifetime of this Assembly, I am providing the necessary space for all the organisations in the justice system to reform their case management processes.”

The Minister advised that the details of the scheme would be a matter for further development and widespread consultation.

He said: “I have asked the Criminal Justice Board to consider in detail how such time limits should work in Northern Ireland.

“The present situation cannot continue. Delay reduces public confidence, wastes the system’s resources and, worst of all, prolongs the ordeal of victims.”

The Minister noted that there may be some concern about the impact of statutory time limits on victims but confirmed that he would ensure that adequate protections were in place for victims.

He said:  “I am clear that a crucial part of this work must be to safeguard the interests of victims in seeking justice and this will be an important part of the consultation process.”

Notes to Editors

  1. Statutory time limits are targets set by law which give the criminal justice system a specified time to progress a criminal case.  Failure to comply with such time limits results in a penalty.
  2. The Minister has decided to introduce time limits to the Youth Court within the life of Assembly.  
  3. The CJINI report “Avoidable Delay: A Progress Report” was published on 24 January.  The report follows an earlier report on avoidable delay published in June 2010.  The report considers performance by the criminal justice system in Northern Ireland against standards for speedier justice.  The recent independent reviews of Youth Justice and Criminal Justice made similar recommendations.  All three reports recommend the initial focus should be on the Youth Court.
  4. Having announced his intention to introduce time limits, the Minister has asked the Criminal Justice Board to examine how such time limits should work in practice.  Their recommendations will be subjected to widespread consultation.
  5. Initially the limits will focus on the Youth Court but application to adult offenders will be kept under review.  
  6. The Criminal Justice Board comprises the heads of the criminal justice agencies and is chaired by the Director of Criminal Justice in the Department of Justice.  
  7. A further announcement will be made once this work is completed.