Why MPs are revolting over plans to curb trial by jury

As a Christmas gift, yet another backbench rebellion must be something of a disappointment for the prime minister and his lord chancellor, David Lammy. Almost 40 Labour MPs have signed a letter to Keir Starmer telling him that Lammy’s proposal to scale back the number of trials by jury is “madness”. Signatories, led by Hull East MP Karl Turner, also warn that “there is a growing number of our colleagues who are not prepared to support these proposals”.

- SEAN O'GRADY

For a government with an overwhelming parliamentary majority, it seems to struggle to retain the loyalty of its own parliamentarians.

What do the rebels want?

They argue that Lammy’s reforms aren’t just an assault on an ancient human right, but that they are based on a flawed analysis of the situation and just won’t work. As the letter puts it: “The backlog has been caused by a multitude of complex, interrelated factors, including of course the Covid pandemic, and it will require a complex response to fix. The drastic restriction of the right to trial by jury is not a silver bullet. To limit a fundamental right for what will make a marginal difference to the backlog, if any, is madness and will cause more problems than it solves.”

Are the rebel MPs right?