Jury trials to be scrapped: the verdict

The Justice Secretary has announced one of the biggest changes in hundreds of years to the way the British justice system works. Jury trials for crimes carrying sentences of three years or less will be scrapped - but will this really solve the deep-rooted problems at the heart of a creaking system? In this episode, Andy and Neil explain how the backlog in our criminal courts has reached a record high - and debate whether getting rid of juries will really speed things up, or if it might end up leading to more miscarriages of justice. They also compare the UK's system to those in other countries, and discuss whether juries would have reached different verdicts in high-profile cases such as the ones involving Amanda Knox and Oscar Pistorius. Andy and Neil also reveal the other changes the government could make to improve our broken criminal justice system - and later, they look at the impact the thousands of arrests at recent Palestine Action protests will be having on that very system. Follow us on social media: @thecrimeagents