The Budget shows that cuts to the justice system will continue over the next five years, says think tank

The justice system will have to absorb further budget cuts over the next five years, meaning that the Ministry of Justice’s (MoJ) budget in 2023 will be half what it was in 2010 when the Conservatives came to power, centre-left think tank the Resolution Foundation has warned.

The Chancellor, Philip Hammond, set out his government’s budget on 29 October, which confirmed that the MoJ’s funding will decrease from £6.3 billion to £6 billion in 2019, with forecasts for further cuts in subsequent years.

As Legal Futures reports, the Resolution Foundation – currently chaired by former Conservative minister Lord Willetts – said that by 2023-24, funding for the justice system will be 48% of what it was in 2009-10 with inflation considered. The forecasts contradict recent assurances from the government that austerity is ending.

The Bar Council has also produced research showing that cuts to the justice system have been far more severe than those faced by other government departments. The Law Gazette reports that between 2008-18, MoJ funding fell by 27%, Crown Prosecution Service funding fell by 34% and legal aid funding fell by 32%, compared to 5% cuts to the education budget and 6% cuts to the defence budget.

Andrew Walker QC, chair of the Bar, said that the research shows “just how badly justice has been treated in comparison with other areas of government expenditure”.

Richard Burgon MP, the shadow justice secretary, said: “Under the Tories, our justice system has already been cut to the bone. Further cuts will push justice from crisis to breaking point.”

A spokesperson for the MoJ said: “We are continuing to engage with HM Treasury on ensuring that the justice system has sufficient funding in both the short and medium term, ahead of the spending review in 2019. The department continues to work to ensure that the department’s finances are set on a long-term sustainable footing.”