Conservatives force votes on court transcripts and fairer sentencing appeals for victims

Today [Wednesday 25^th March 2026], the Conservative Party will force votes in Parliament to allow victims access to free court transcripts, to allow then public to quest access to transcripts, and to extend the time limits for unduly lenient sentencing appeals.

Victims have been locked out of the very system meant to deliver justice. Access to court transcripts remains costly and limited, restricting transparency and leaving many without a full account of what happened in their own cases.

For decades, grooming gangs systematically raped and abused thousands of vulnerable white, working-class girls. The girls were let down by those who were supposed to protect them. In some cases, their protectors – social workers, councillors, police officers – were not only complicit in the abuse but abused the girls themselves. The full truth of those crimes has only emerged through the bravery of survivors and the persistence of journalists and campaigners alike through access to court transcripts.

But it has taken years for the facts to come out. We still do not have the whole truth, and these crimes continue to happen. We need transparency, and part of that transparency must be court transcripts.

The Conservative Party's amendment will require sentencing remarks in the Crown Court to be published within two sitting days and made freely available online. Vitally, it will allow victims and the public to access the facts without cost or delay.

The Conservative Party has also tabled an amendment to extend the time limit for applications to the unduly lenient sentencing scheme. Under the current system, victims and their families have just 28 days to challenge a sentence they believe is too lenient, a window that is often missed simply because they were not properly informed of their rights. The proposed change would allow that deadline to be extended in exceptional circumstances, including where public bodies have failed in their duty to notify victims.

This is a simple but important reform that recognises the reality many families face in the aftermath of serious crimes, and means access to justice does not depend on whether the system has worked perfectly. Victims should not lose their right to challenge a sentence because of administrative failure or lack of communication, and this amendment would help ensure that justice remains accessible when it matters most.

Alongside this, the Conservatives will also force votes to strengthen support for victims, including extending the Victims' Code to families of those killed overseas and ensuring victims are properly informed of their rights.

Nonetheless, Labour's wider record on criminal justice raises serious concerns. Under Labour we have seen the early release of nearly 50,000 prisoners under the SDS40 scheme and the accidental release of more than 260 prisoners in the past year. Calamity Lammy has lurched from crisis to crisis and now is taking the bluntest tool possible in attempt to cover for his failure.

The Conservative Party is giving Parliament the opportunity to back transparency and strengthen victims' rights through a simple, yet vital change to ensure horrors like the grooming gangs scandal cannot be hidden.

Nick Timothy MP, Shadow Justice Secretary, said:

“Victims are not getting the help and support they deserve. More can be done to make the courts transparent and accessible to victims, but David Lammy is standing in the way of change.

“The public should have the right to request the free and online publication of sentencing remarks so we can see what is really happening in the justice system.

“More flexibility is needed to ensure victims and families can stop criminals from getting away with light sentences. These are common sense reforms and Labour should back them too.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

The Conservative Party's amendments to the Victims and Courts Bill:

• The Conservative Party have put forward an amendment to give victims access to free court transcripts. ‘After Clause 7, insert the following new Clause— “Access to free court transcripts for victims (1) Victims of criminal offences shall be entitled to receive, without charge, court transcripts of— (a) the Route to Verdict, and (b) bail decisions and conditions, which are relevant to their case. (2) The Secretary of State must ensure that such transcripts are provided within 14 days of a request. (3) The entitlement under subsection (1) shall apply irrespective of whetherthe victim gave evidence in the case.”' (Victims and Courts Bill, Lords Amendments, 18 March 2026, link).

• The Conservative Party have put forward an amendment to force publication of court transcripts online. ‘After Clause 7, insert the following new Clause— “Publication of court transcripts of sentencing remarks (1) Where a request is made forthe sentencing remarks delivered in the Crown Court, the court must, subject to subsection (2), make those remarks publicly available online within 14 days of the request being received. (2) The court must, before publication, make the relevant victim(s) aware that they have a right to request anonymity, and if such a request is made, take the necessary steps to prevent the risk of identification of the victim, including through jigsaw identification.”' (Victims and Courts Bill, Lords Amendments, 18 March 2026, link).

• The Conservative Party have put forward an amendment to extend the time limit for applications to the unduly lenient sentencing scheme.‘After Clause 14, insert the following new Clause— “Unduly lenient sentences: time limit In paragraph 1 of Schedule 3 to the Criminal Justice Act 1988, at end insert “, subject to sub-paragraph (2). (2) The time limit of 28 days shall be extended in exceptional circumstances, which may include but not be limited to a failure of the relevant body to inform the victim and families of theirrights under section 36 (reviews of sentencing).”” (Victims and Courts Bill, Lords Amendments, 18 March 2026, link).

• The Conservative Party have put forward an amendment to ensure that victims and their next of kin are informed about their rights under the unduly lenient sentencing scheme. ‘After Clause 14, insert the following new Clause— “Duty to inform victims and families of the unduly lenient sentencing scheme After section 36 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988, insert— “36A Duty to inform victims and families of the unduly lenient sentencing scheme (1) The Secretary of State must nominate a government department to inform victims and their families of their rights set out in section 36 (reviews of sentencing). (2) The information provided under subsection (1) must include the type of sentence and the time limit for application, and advise that applications must be made to the Attorney General.”” (Victims and Courts Bill, Lords Amendments, 18 March 2026, link).

• The Conservative Party have put forward an amendment to extend the Victims Code to those whose close relative was killed overseas. ‘After Clause 7, insert the following new Clause— “Application of the victims' code in respect of victims of murder, manslaughter or infanticide abroad (1) The Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 is amended as follows. (2) After section 4, insert— “4A Application of the victims' code in respect of victims of murder, manslaughter or infanticide of a close family member abroad (1) This section relates to victims as defined under section 1(2)(c) who are close family members of a British National resident in England and Wales who was the victim of— (a) murder, (b) manslaughter, or (c) infanticide, committed outside the United Kingdom. (2) The Secretary of State must by regulations issue an appendix to the victims' code, setting out how the code applies to victims in the circumstances set out in subsection (1). (3) The appendix must set out the services to be provided to victims as defined under subsection (1) by those persons based in England and Wales appearing to the Secretary of State to have functions of a public nature relating to— (a) victims, or (b) any aspect of the criminal justice system. (4) The appendix must make provision for services based in England and Wales which reflect the principles that victims require— (a) information to help them understand the criminal justice process, (b) access to services within England and Wales which provide them with emotional and practical support (including, where appropriate, specialist services), (c) in circumstances where the criminal justice process is engaged in England and Wales, the opportunity to make their views heard in the criminal justice process, and (d) the ability to challenge decisions which have a direct impact on them. (5) In setting out the services to be provided to victims under this section, the Secretary of State must specify the following— (a) how such services will be provided with accessible information; (b) how they access emotional and practical support.”” (Victims and Courts Bill, Lords Amendments, 18 March 2026, link).

The previous Conservative Government's record on strengthening the justice system:

• We allowed the courts to sit at maximum capacity for three years in a row whilst recruiting up to 1,000 judges, ensuring greater access to justice.In August 2023, we announced £220 million over the subsequent two years for essential modernisation and repair work, ensuring our courts can stay open. We extended the use of 24 Nightingale courtrooms in 2023 and opened two permanent ‘super courtrooms' to hear as many cases as possible (MoJ,Press Release, 11 August 2023, link).

• We toughened up sentences for the worst criminals, ensuring life really does mean life for the most depraved in society. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts (PCSC) Act introduced whole life orders for child killers involving abduction or sexual or sadistic motivation (MoJ, Press Release, 6 November 2023, link).

• We ended halfway releases for serious offenders, keeping the most dangerous offenders behind bars for longer. Our PCSC Act ended the automatic half way release of serious violent and sexual offenders introduced by Labour (MoJ, Press Release, 9 March 2021, link; Hansard, 5 July 2021, Division 44, link).

Labour's record undermining public safety and the justice system:

• David Lammy said juries deter and expose prejudice and unintended bias.  LAMMY: ‘For example, juries deliberate as a group through open discussion. This both deters and exposes prejudice or unintended bias: judgments must be justified to others. Successive studies have shown that juries deliver equitable results, regardless of the ethnic make-up of the jury, or of the defendant in question (Lammy Review,  Final Report, 8 September 2017, link).

• David Lammy said juries are the ‘guardians of this principle [impartiality].LAMMY: ‘Our justice system is built on the principle that the law will be applied impartially. In the cases that involve the greatest harm to victims and the longest sentences for offenders, juries are the guardians of this principle (Lammy Review,  Final Report, 8 September 2017, link).

• Keir Starmer said ‘the general and overriding presumption should be jury trial, with very, very limited exceptions'. STARMER: ‘I'm strongly in favour of jury trials … but I do recognise that in very exceptional cases trials will have to proceed without a jury. That has to be on the order of a court, so the general and overriding presumption should be jury trial, with very, very limited exceptions' (The Lawyer, Keir Starmer Lawyer2B Interview, 25 January 2010, link).

• Keir Starmer said the right to ‘trial by jury is an important factor in the delicate balance between the power of the state and the freedom of the individual' and he urged ‘there be a right of trial in all criminal cases.' STARMER: ‘The right to trial by jury is an important factor in the delicate balance between the power of the state and the freedom of the individual. The further it is restricted, the greater the imbalance. Despite the inevitable increase in costs, the Haldane Society urges that there be a right of trial by jury in all criminal cases' (Socialist Lawyer Magazine, 1992, archived).

• Labour have released nearly 50,000 criminals from prison early in just 12 months, risking the safety of the British public. Since entering office, Labour have released 48,931 under their early release scheme between 10 September 2024 and 30 September 2025 (MoJ, Transparency Data, 29 January 2026, link). 

• 262 prisoners have been accidentally released on Labour's watch, an increase of 128 per cent from the previous year.In the 12 months to March 2025, 262 prisoners were accidentally released, the highest in the time series, largely because of the operational and legislative changes imposed on this Labour Government onto prison officers (MoJ, Official Statistics, 31 July 2025, link).

• Labour will release the most dangerous criminals, including killers and rapists, onto our streets after serving just half of their prison sentence.Labour's Sentencing Bill changes the law so that most criminals, including sex offenders and robbers, will be released after serving just a third of their sentence with the exception of killers and rapists who will have to serve at least half of their sentence (UK Parliament, Sentencing Bill, 2 September 2025, link).

• Labour will hand over 40,000 criminals a ‘get out of free' jail card by abolishing custodial sentences less than 12 months long. Because of Labour's Sentencing Bill, criminals, including burglars, shoplifters and knife offenders, will instead face community sentences under their plan to scrap most jail terms of under 12 months (The Telegraph, 24 May 2025, link).

• The Justice Secretary is abolishing jury trials for most crimes, despite previously defending them as fundamental to democracy. In 2020, David Lammy said that ‘jury trials are a fundamental part of our democratic settlement' and warned that ‘criminal trials without juries are a bad idea', yet he is now removing juries from cases likely to receive three-year sentences or below (Hansard, Vol.776 Col.802, 2 December 2025, link; David Lammy, X, 20 June 2020, link).

• Karl Turner, a former Shadow Attorney General, said that Lammy and Starmer should be ‘ashamed' over their plan to scrap jury trials.TURNER: ‘I am determined to stop this ludicrous plan. They both know this isn't going to touch the backlog. They ought to be ashamed. The fact that they are pitching this as if it will be the answer to victims waiting years for justice is crude and untrue. It's over-promising to ultimately under-deliver. It will let those innocent people down' (Huffington Post, 1 January 2026, link).