Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if his Department will review the use of the single justice procedure for charges made under the Coronavirus Act 2020.

The government has no plans to review the use of the Single Justice Procedure for these offences.

This is a quicker and more straightforward procedure for prosecutors dealing with these types of cases, and there are clear safeguards in place which ensure that it is only used in appropriate circumstances. A defendant must agree to this process being used and they always have the option to instead have their case heard in open court. A magistrate can also refer a case to open court if they deem it would not be appropriately dealt with using the Procedure.