A rebellious Labour MP has issued a stark warning of instigating a by-election unless Sir Keir Starmer reconsiders the government’s controversial proposal to eliminate jury trials for numerous cases.
Karl Turner, representing Kingston upon Hull East and a former barrister, expressed his dismay, labeling the Prime Minister’s plan as ‘ridiculous’ and admitting his embarrassment over the matter.
He further disclosed that he had alerted Labour whips of his intention to potentially call for a by-election in his district to underscore a ‘principled point.’
In the previous general election, Mr. Turner secured his East Riding of Yorkshire seat by a margin of nearly 4,000 votes against Reform UK.
However, with Labour’s declining poll numbers since the 2024 election and Reform’s growing momentum, Nigel Farage’s party is optimistic about claiming victory in any prospective by-election.
This week, Mr. Turner stood alone as the only Labour MP to oppose the government’s proposal to abolish jury trials during a House of Commons vote.
He broke the party whip for the first time since becoming an MP in 2010 to side with the Tories and vote against the proposals.
Mr Turner, a former shadow attorney general, has been a consistent critic of Sir Keir and Justice Secretary David Lammy since the plans were announced last year.
Karl Turner, the MP for Kingston upon HullEast and a former barrister, said he was ‘ashamed’ of the Prime Minister over the ‘ludicrous proposals’
Mr Turner, a former shadow attorney general, has been a consistent critic of Sir Keir and Justice Secretary David Lammy (pictured) since the plans to scrap jury trials were announced
Mr Lammy, who is also the Deputy Prime Minister, wants to set up so-called ‘swift courts’ in England and Wales, where cases will be heard by a judge alone.
He has argued the action is necessary to slash the Crown Court backlog, which has nearly hit 80,000 cases.
But Mr Turner has said the primary cause of the crown court backlog is the restriction on the number of court sitting days, and that scrapping jury trials is an ineffective way of dealing with the issue.
In an interview with the Sunday Times, the Labour backbencher said he was ‘not fearful of having the whip removed’ after voting against the Government.
He said his own experience of being accused of a crime meant he was determined to save the right to a jury trial.
‘Many years ago I dealt in antiques,’ he said. ‘I bought items that turned out to be stolen unbeknown to me. It can happen. It did with me.
‘I was arrested, interviewed by the police, charged and remanded in custody for court.
‘On the advice of my legal team, I was advised – on the strength of the evidence – to elect for a jury trial.
‘By the time the case came before the court it was fairly obvious that there wasn’t enough evidence for the matter to go before the jury so it was thrown out.
‘The prosecution offered no evidence.
‘But the late judge His Hon Judge Tom Cracknell, who much later became a good friend of mine, discharged me from the court with a warning to ‘be more careful in the future’.’
He added: ‘When I say this matters to me, it really matters to me.
‘But for my experience at the wrong end of the criminal law I wouldn’t have become a lawyer and if my dear late friend HHJ Cracknell had had his way I doubt very much that I’d have been a member of parliament.
‘That’s why I am able to say to the PM that I am ashamed of him and I am ashamed of David Lammy.
‘The Government must stop these ludicrous proposals and get on with the hard job of sorting out the criminal justice system — a system that has been badly underfunded by governments of all political persuasions for decades.’
The Government has said it will drop jury trials for offences with a likely prison sentence of three years or less.
The ability to appeal a magistrates’ court verdict to a crown court will also be limited. Ministers have put forward the plans to speed up the justice process.
A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: ‘Victims are facing an unacceptably long wait for justice after years of delays in our courts. This Government is determined to change that.
‘That is why we are combining bold reforms, record levels of investment and action to tackle inefficiencies across the system – so victims and survivors see their cases heard sooner and get the justice they deserve.
‘Taken together, these measures will ensure the most serious cases are prioritised and continue to be heard by a jury, while reducing unnecessary delays that leave victims waiting for far too long.’
