The first day of strike action by barristers on Monday (June 27) resulted in cases at Ipswich Crown Court being adjourned adding to the backlog caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

One defendant, who pleaded guilty to drug offences in December, was expecting to be sentenced on Monday after four earlier hearings in January, March and April were adjourned.

However, his barrister notified the court that he wouldn’t be attending the hearing because of strike action following a ballot of Criminal Bar Association members earlier this month and the case was adjourned indefinitely.

A plea and trial preparation hearing for a defendant accused of robbery and the trial of a woman accused of a drug offence also had to be adjourned because of the strike action.

Last week a top Suffolk QC blamed the government's "lack of engagement" over legal aid funding for forcing criminal barristers into strike action.

Simon Spence QC said the strike action would cause "a lot of disruption" to the courts over the summer.

East Anglian Daily Times: Simon Spence QCSimon Spence QC (Image: Archant)

“It's not something any of us want to do but I'm afraid the government's lack of engagement has forced us into this position.

"We have cooperated for years and years, and particularly through Covid to keep the system going, and we've reached a stage where we're having to say, 'I'm sorry, enough is enough'."

Mr Spence added: "We are a profession, no different from doctors, nurses, teachers, and members of the armed forces. We deserve some respect, and we deserve to be paid properly for the work we do because anybody who goes to court knows it's not easy work.

"We're dealing with defendants who are at times not very pleasant, it involves long hours, which are sometimes quite stressful, and none of that, we think, is properly reflected in the rates of pay and the way we're treated."

In April, CBA members voted in favour of refusing to accept returns – where a barrister steps in to represent a defendant whose original barrister is unable to attend court.

The CBA said it also made "repeated efforts" to persuade the government to honour the recommendations of the Criminal Legal Aid Review to increase their fees by 15% immediately, but have been disappointed.

The strike action is intended to last for four weeks, beginning with walkouts on Monday and Tuesday June 27 and 28, increasing by one day each week until a five-day strike from Monday, July 18 to Friday, July 22.