Barristers in England and Wales vote to go on all-out strike

Criminal barristers have voted in favour of an escalation of strike action from next month. 

The walkout by members of the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) will begin on September 5th ‘on an indefinite basis’ after a massive 79% of members backed an uninterrupted strike.

The strikes are expected to delay thousands of criminal cases.

The CBA is asking for a 25% rise in pay for legal aid work, when they represent defendants who could not otherwise afford lawyers.

The CBA rejected the government’s proposed 15% fee rise from the end of September, saying it would not kick in immediately or apply to existing cases.

The association says its members have suffered an average decrease in earnings of 28% since 2006 – when taking inflation into account – and has accused the government of refusing to engage in negotiations ‘aimed at finding a fair settlement’ to demands. 

Read More: Royal Mail workers to strike for four days in pay dispute

CBA vice chair Kirsty Brimelow QC said this was a ‘last-resort action’ over a demand for less money than it costs the government for the courts to sit empty.

Brimelow told BBC Breakfast: “The remedy is for an injection of money into the backlog of cases which currently stands at 60,000 cases, that barristers are working on that will cost the government only £1.1 million per month.

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“Currently, it’s costing much more for the courts to sit empty.”

According to Ministry of Justice figures, more than 6,000 court hearings have been disrupted as a result of the dispute over conditions and government-set fees for legal aid advocacy work.

Criminal barristers join the likes of rail staff, teachers and civil servants in backing or considering industrial action over the coming months amid the cost of living crisis.