Criminal barristers vote to end strike over pay

Criminal barristers in England and Wales have voted to end their long-running strike action after the government offered a new pay deal.

A total of 57% of barristers voted in a ballot to accept a 15% pay rise, the Criminal Bar Association said.

The decision means that crown courts will begin hearing cases as normal from Tuesday.

Hundreds of trials have been delayed during the action. It is not clear how quickly the backlog can be reduced.

The barristers had been offered a package of measures by new Justice Secretary Brandon Lewis which went much further than what had been put on the table by his predecessor, Dominic Raab.

The deal included an immediate 15% rise in fees for government-funded defence work - an independent recommendation first made to ministers almost a year ago. There was also a promise that this would apply to 60,000 cases in the unprecedented national backlog.

Mr Lewis has offered additional payments for a range of court preparation work that barristers said they were not being properly paid for.

Barristers, who originally requested a 25% pay rise, said criminal justice was falling apart due to a chronic lack of funding, arguing that ministers had to invest far more cash in order to cut the record delays to trials.

Mr Lewis said: "Since starting this job five weeks ago, my priority has been to end this strike action and reduce delays for victims, and I'm glad that barristers have agreed to return to work. 

"This breakthrough is a result of coming together and restarting what I hope to be a constructive relationship as we work to drive down the backlog and ensure victims see justice done sooner." 

Diana Fawcett, chief executive at the charity Victim Support, said it was positive news for victims but that more had to be done to reduce waiting times.

"It's important to remember that when it comes to the huge backlogs in our courts, these strikes, and the delay caused by the pandemic are only part of the picture," she said.

"Long court delays have been an issue for nearly a decade, and are agonising for victims."