Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to prioritise cases in which a person on remand has a Custody Time Limit that (a) has expired and (b) is about to expire.
HMCTS is working closely with the Judiciary and criminal justice agencies to ensure that cases that need to be prioritised can be. The introduction of emergency legislation enabling the courts to make greater use of audio and video technology for any preliminary hearings where appropriate, has ensured that priority cases, including custody cases, have been heard.
The prioritisation of cases and trials is a judicial decision and the senior judiciary has issued the following guidance: