Covid fast track prosecutions unsafe

Since the start of the pandemic 40,000 people have been prosecuted for breaking Covid restrictions through a special fast-track process. But the procedure has raised concerns that it lacks transparency and it is now feared that hundreds of people may have been wrongly charged and prosecuted.

Out of the 44,000 cases, last year over 4,000 were subjected to a Single Justice Procedure [SJP] with reference to health protection regulations. These SJP rulings are made by a single magistrate accompanied by a single legal advisor. Defendants receive a letter informing them of their breach and they then decide if they want to attend court to argue their case. Over 90% do not attend.

But a review of SJPs in England & Wales has found that 18% of people subjected to them are wrongly charged. Opponents of the scheme suggest that they are inappropriate for assessing charges under lockdown laws that are often confusing and variable across the country.

In addition at least 37 of the SJPs related to schedule 22 of the Coronavirus Act which has not yet been officially activated making these prosecutions unlawful. In any event SJPs are only supposed to be applied to health protection regulations, not the Coronavirus Act. All charges brought under the Coronavirus Act are also unlawful.