The Ministry of Justice budget rises 5.6% to £13.8bn in 2025-26, with funding for the Law Officers’ Department, which finances criminal prosecution services, rising 7.5% to £1.1bn.
Sam Townend KC, Chair of the Bar Council, welcomed the ‘much-needed real terms increases’ but said: ‘Justice has suffered a real terms cut of over 20% since 2010 and will need sustained funding through next spring’s spending review to move away from crisis mode.
‘For the government to meet its ambitious targets to halve violent crime and violence against women and girls in a decade, equally ambitious policy thinking, coupled with long-term resource and capital funding, will be required.’
Magistrates’ Association national chair, Mark Beattie also welcomed the extra money but highlighted that ‘all parts of the justice system including courts need considerable new investment if justice is to be served fairly and efficiently’.
Beattie called for Treasury investment in four key areas—a ten-year court rebuilding and modernisation programme ‘to repair buildings and make courts accessible to disabled people and with the technology required to host remote hearings and enable real-time translation of proceedings’.
Second, Beattie called for a 10% increase in allocated magistrates’ court sitting days. Third, he asked for extra funding to recruit more court legal advisers, as ‘currently, the shortage of legal advisers means that court sittings are cancelled at short notice, and the delay in pre-sentence reports means that there are delays in sentencing those who have been convicted’.
Fourth, he urged the government to reform the expenses system for magistrates so it is fairer and less bureaucratic.
Law Society president Richard Atkinson noted there was no mention of civil and criminal legal aid in the budget documents, and reiterated his message that funding the justice system saves costs further down the line.
‘The physical infrastructure of the courts is so poor that there are 100 emergency court room closures every week,’ he said.
‘In some parts of the country, criminal cases that are ready for trial are being listed to be heard in the second half of 2027, amid a huge backlog. Cases involving children being taken into care are often taking well over a year to resolve, against a target to conclude them in six months.’
Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ budget aims to raise an extra £40bn in taxes. Tax hikes include employers’ national insurance contributions (NICs), which go up by 1.2% to 15% from April, with the threshold reduced from £9,100 to £5,000, raising £25bn per year.
Nicky Owen, head of professional practices, Crowe UK, said: ‘One upshot of the increase in employers NIC is that LLP structures have instantly become more attractive.
‘Professional practice firms may want to relook at their salaried partners and consider whether it is time to promote them to fully fledged partners.’
Conveyancing lawyers are also dealing with a rise from 3% to 5% in stamp duty land tax for second homes. Jonathan Achampong, head of residential property, Howard Kennedy, said: ‘Over the coming days and weeks, potential buyers and investors are likely to seek to renegotiate purchase prices to factor in this additional cost and we may also see some downward pressure exerted on sale prices over the coming months.’
The reduction in agricultural property relief for asset-rich-income-poor farmers hoping to hand on the family business is likely to keep inheritance tax and agricultural lawyers busy for a while. Reeves also abolished non-dom status, and set aside funds for the victims of the infected blood and Post office Horizon scandals.
