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Reforms overseen by David Lammy and Sir Keir Starmer put public trust in the criminal justice system at risk |
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Geoffrey Robertson |
This Government is pushing ahead with its plan to eliminate at least half of all jury trials in Britain.
Trial by jury is a unique English institution which has served for centuries to provide a form of criminal justice that is trusted and respected by the public. When asked what should be the very first right to be protected by a British Bill of Rights, 89 per cent said the right to be tried by a jury. So, what has possessed the Government to take the axe to an institution that is on any view a part of our heritage?
The ostensible reason is the long delays in cases coming to court, but this backlog is not caused by jury trials. Its origins lie in the austerity policy of 2010, when the Ministry of Justice became a soft target for government defunding. This was followed by Covid, which closed the courts for lengthy periods and increased the backlog fourfold.
The advantages of determining guilt or innocence by 12 citizens is that this is a surer guide to the right result than trial by magistrates. Only 3 per cent of magistrates are manual workers, and none are unemployed; 41 per cent of their verdicts that go to appeal are overturned.
The two irreplaceable advantages of jury trial are that juries are independent of the state and they can extend mercy – an essential attribute of justice – to those who deserve it.
Read Robertson’s piece here ➤
Plus, catch up on the full story here ➤ |
Trump’s ruthless blockade will lock the US into a war of attrition with IranThe United States has turned away two vessels that were trying to pass the Strait of Hormuz, according to tracking data.
Yesterday the US navy began its blockade of the passage, vowing to halt transit for “vessels of all nations entering or departing Iranian ports”.
Donald Trump earlier vowed that any vessel that comes close to the US navy ships would be “immediately ELIMINATED”.
It was a turbulent day for the president elsewhere yesterday, too, as he posted and then deleted a picture of himself as Jesus Christ during an extraordinary row with the Pope.
Trump’s AI-generated image, which he later deleted |
In the strait, ship-tracking data appear to show the tanker Rich Starry, which departed Sharjah anchorage off the coast of Dubai yesterday heading for China, turning around minutes after approaching the key shipping route.
A second vessel, the Ostria, also seems to have been sent back. Both tankers can carry oil and chemicals.
David Blair, our Chief Affairs Commentator, asks: will this embargo succeed when 13,000 air strikes have already failed?
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David Blair Chief Foreign Affairs Commentator |
Trump’s last best hope for winning the war in Iran is America’s new blockade of the country’s ports.
Throughout the conflict, Iran has closed the Strait of Hormuz to all tankers except its own. While choking the economies of its Gulf neighbours, Iran has managed to export up to 1.8 million barrels of its own oil every day.
Now, Trump aims to sever that lifeline and force Iran’s leaders back to the negotiating table to accept his terms. However, if this plan is going to work, he will have to enforce the blockade for months, possibly years, and grind down Iran with a campaign of attrition.
Given that its regime has withstood 13,000 air strikes, it’s not clear why they would crumble before a blockade. The question is whether their powers of endurance and persistence will outlast the US president’s.
Continue reading ➤
Go deeper with our Iran coverage:
US rejects Iran plan to halt nuclear activity for five years ➤
How Iran hopes to survive Trump’s blockade ➤
Finally, if you want to see more of our unparalleled international reporting, sign up to our new newsletter, Cables, your daily briefing of world affairs, analysis and in-depth analysis, plus a window into what people are talking about in countries around the world. |
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Oliver Brown Rory McIlroy is Europe’s greatest-ever golferWith back-to-back Masters wins, the Northern Irishman has surpassed Seve Ballesteros as the continent’s best Continue reading ➤
Charles Moore The Pope must keep out of US politics despite Trump’s provocations Continue reading ➤
Camilla Tominey The selfishness of Axel Rudakubana’s parents is simply unforgivable Continue reading ➤ |
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The Duke and Duchess of Sussex received a heartwarming welcome |
Harvey Willgoose was just 15 when he was stabbed to death by a fellow pupil at his secondary school in Sheffield in 2025. It later transpired that his killer, Mohammed Umar Khan, had racked up 130 incidents involving violence, weapons and aggression, but that, instead of being expelled, he had been quietly transferred to Harvey’s school in something known as a “managed move”. In a special report, Julie Henry investigates the rise of these tactics among educators who seem more interested in cutting the “stigma” of exclusion than protecting the majority of innocent, well-behaved pupils. For subscribers only ➤ |
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Hearing drones is not difficult: they emit a hellish shrieking sound, which becomes deafening as they approach, writes Antonia Langford, in Kyiv. However, escaping from them is another matter, as I found out when I joined a simulation hosted by the 2402 Foundation. The exercise demonstrated what it’s like to be hunted by the deadly flying machines, which now account for an estimated 80 per cent of casualties on the front lines. Continue reading ➤ |
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Migrants are lying about their nationality to gain asylum in Britain, audio obtained by The Telegraph has revealed. An Iraqi migrant covertly recorded an interview in which he claimed to be a member of a stateless minority group in Kuwait. He then shared it with people smugglers, who used it to coach other migrants wanting to start a life in Britain. The clip is the latest example of what is described as “nationality shopping”, where migrants say they hail from countries from which a higher rate of people are granted asylum to boost their chances of achieving refugee status. Listen to the interview recording here ➤ |
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From subtle one-upmanship (“We liked the Audi, too, but just couldn't resist a Porsche”) to full-blown discussion hijacking (abruptly changing the subject of a conversation to talk about yourself), social intercourse is becoming increasingly self-centred, writes George Chesterton. Here, I examine why we’re talking more and listening less, and reveal the five telltale signs of a conversational narcissist. Continue reading ➤ |
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Melanie and Paul Evans on their wedding day |
When Paul Evans’s wife, Melanie, was diagnosed with terminal cancer, he became her around-the-clock carer. He soon found himself teaching his friends about different chemotherapy types as they watched the football, and realised there was little support for carers like himself. So, Paul began jotting down the lessons he learned and has published them in Melanie’s memory, hoping to help fellow carers navigate the challenges of a loved one’s illness. Continue reading ➤ |
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Beginning or growing a buy-to-let empire doesn’t require a huge pot of cash. Just £25,000 can cover your deposit and stamp duty costs in areas with high tenant demand, with potential yields of up to 12 per cent. Our guide reveals where you can find them. Continue reading ➤ Below is another article that I hope will help you today:
- As the days get longer and the temperature rises by a few degrees, now’s the perfect time for a spring walk. Here’s our guide to the Pennine Way, the UK’s oldest national trail.
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Branson, Missouri, blossomed into the Ozark region’s entertainment capital in the 1980s |
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Robert Jackman Travel Writer |
Missouri is among the US states least known to overseas tourists, with just 165,000 non-American visitors in 2024. Yet it’s home to one of its most enduringly popular, if slightly offbeat, domestic holiday destinations: the Ozarks.
Showcased in the Netflix crime caper Ozark, this outdoorsy region in one of America’s most conservative states boasts a namesake mountain range, an eponymous lake, and a sprawling network of limestone caves. Some have dubbed it “the Norfolk Broads for Trump voters”.
Lake Ouachita in Arkansas, the state’s largest man-made lake, spans over 40,000 acres |
It’s also home to Branson, a wholesome entertainment resort parodied in The Simpsons as “Las Vegas if it were run by Ned Flanders”.
Our writer Robert Jackman is amused by the Donald Trump inflatable at the end of the Branson Strip |
With a new BA flight to St. Louis, the state’s main gateway, launching this month, I visited the Ozarks to find out what a holiday in this Maga heartland is really like. I found some of America’s most staggeringly beautiful countryside, and plenty of Trump merchandise.
Read the full article here ➤ |
A cracking questionEvery weekday, Orlando Bird, our loyal reader correspondent, shares an off-piste topic that has brought out the best of your opinions and stories. Orlando writes...
Samuel Johnson praised Thomas Gray’s Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard for conveying “sentiments to which every bosom returns an echo”. By a similar token, Ramesh Nayak recently posed a question on the Letters page to which, it seemed, every Telegraph reader had an answer.
“I find it difficult”, he confessed, “to peel off the shell of a hard-boiled egg without causing significant damage to the underlying albumen. The shell comes off in bits, with chunks of egg attached. Once removed, the egg looks like the surface of the moon. It’s perfectly edible, but not a nice smooth oval shape. How do the experts do it?”
So it began. Yes, words like “Trump”, “Iran”, “global” and “conflagration” were occasionally spotted in our inbox on Monday morning, but they were mere buoys bobbing in an ocean of egg-themed correspondence.
George Adams was quick off the mark. “Never boil a cold egg,” he counselled. “If you keep eggs in the fridge, leave one out overnight.”
“My advice is: don’t boil your egg at all,” added Neil Russell. “Steam it – but for longer. It works, though I have no idea why.”
Ros Meacock took an entirely different approach: “I place the hard-boiled egg in a glass jam jar and give it a good shake. The shell always peels off very easily.”
Michael Bacon’s reply was particularly exhaustive: “I use hen or duck eggs that are at least a week old, as fresh eggs are more difficult to peel. I plunge the freshly boiled eggs into a bowl of ice-water for between five and 10 minutes, depending on their size. This causes the albumen to contract, separating it from the membrane and the shell. I then crack each egg lightly in several places, break into the broad end, pierce the membrane and insert a spoon under it while holding the egg under cold running water. This helps the shell slide off in large pieces.”
Another reader, going by the name of Mrs B, was sceptical of such confident solutions. “In my experience it very much depends on the egg. Some egg shells come off easily. Others just don’t. C’est la vie.” How do you peel yours? Send your responses here and the best of the bunch will feature in a future edition of this newsletter.
Please confirm in your reply that you are happy to be featured and that we have your permission to use your name. |
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Blue Zones are places around the world where people routinely live past 100. While there are no officially recognised Blue Zones in Britain, we nevertheless have our own pockets where locals routinely live well into their 80s.
Here, we’ve listed the top 10 British areas where people live the longest, and explained why they might be the best place for your next mini-break. Can you name the town or city depicted in the above photograph, where women live to an average of 86.3 years of age?
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Find as many words as you can in today’s Panagram, including the nine-letter solution. Visit Telegraph Puzzles to play a range of head-scratching games, including PlusWord, Sorted, and Quick, Mini or Cryptic Crosswords.
Yesterday’s Panagram was ABUNDANCE. Come back tomorrow for the solution to today’s puzzle. |
Thank you for reading. Have a fulfilling day and I hope to see you tomorrow. Chris Evans, Editor
P.S. I’d love to hear what you think of this newsletter. You can email me your feedback here. |
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