No longer the finest service

In an attempt to save money Whitehall has cut the police service and the court service.

After the case of the Birmingham six case every police officer was urged to have a criminal defence solicitor to advise defendants in the police station during interview. In 2009 that changed.

Cuts to the criminal court system because of the cautioning process have gone on now for eight long years.

Cuts to probation and alternative disposals to custody in court have also been a complete disaster and have made the problems much worse.

Whitehall wants to lower the high cost of prison by reducing the prison population. Why then cut the probation service?

The privatisation of prison has done nothing to reduce either the prison population nor the high cost per prison place.

The methadone programme has helped but is expensive. There are alternatives which are much cheaper such as ibogaine.

Whitehall’s long term solutions to attack legal aid lawyers’ fees, cut the police service and court system has failed.

Tackle the high cost of prison per place and you will tackle the escalating problem of the high cost of criminal justice.

At present the public feel abandoned by an over stretched police service and a dwindling number of courts.

The finest criminal justice system in the world has been cut to ribbons.

Did our parents and grandparents fight two world wars for this? Nigel F Boddy