Bar Council welcomes new legal leaders while pressing for justice system reforms
The Bar Council has welcomed the appointment of Alex Norris MP as Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice and Rt Hon Ellie Reeves KC MP as Attorney General, while setting out a series of priorities it wants the new government team to address. The appointments followed the government reshuffle announced on 21 July 2026.
In a statement published on 21 July, Kirsty Brimelow KC, Chair of the Bar Council, congratulated both ministers and thanked former Lord Chancellor Rt Hon David Lammy MP and former Attorney General Lord Richard Hermer KC for their engagement with the Bar. She also acknowledged David Lammy’s interest in reforming the youth justice system.
The Bar Council said one of its immediate priorities is persuading the government to abandon its proposal to restrict the right to jury trials. Brimelow said the available evidence shows that reducing the Crown Court backlog does not require fewer jury trials. Instead, she urged the new Lord Chancellor to continue measures that are already helping to improve court efficiency, including opening unused courtrooms and targeted case listing.
The representative body also called for sustained investment across the justice system. It argued that long-term funding for legal aid and the courts is essential to reduce delays and improve access to justice. According to the Bar Council, support provided to victims can be undermined when hearings are postponed because of shortages of barristers, technology failures, difficulties transporting people in custody to court or problems with court infrastructure.
Brimelow said that, despite some recent increases, the Ministry of Justice budget for 2025–26 remains no higher than it was two decades earlier. She noted that this is despite growth in both the economy and the population of England and Wales. The Bar Council also highlighted the legal services sector’s contribution of £38 billion in Gross Value Added (GVA) to the UK economy, arguing that confidence in legal services depends on a well-funded public justice system.
The Bar Council further urged the government to continue supporting the English Law Promotion Panel and called for a coordinated approach across government departments to ensure UK legal services are included in free trade agreements, particularly in relation to dispute resolution. It also encouraged ministers to ratify the Council of Europe Convention for the Protection of the Profession of Lawyer, saying the move would strengthen the rule of law in both the UK and Europe.