The UK Statistics Authority wrote to Max Wilkinson MP about magistrate court statistics

20 January 2026 · Penny Young, Deputy Chair, UK Statistics Authority

The letter, dated 20 January 2026, replies to correspondence of 2 December 2025. The UK Statistics Authority published it as Letter from Penny Young to Max Wilkinson MP – magistrate court statistics; it links to 1 official record. Below are 2 passages from the letter in the regulator's own words.

What the UK Statistics Authority wrote

“Having spoken with the Ministry of Justice, it is our understanding that the Lord Chancellor’s comments were made in the context of comparing the current state of the magistrates’ court with the Crown Court.”

“While he was clear that he was referring to the magistrates’ court specifically, it would have better supported understanding if he had been clear what he meant by a backlog and why he had judged that not to be significant.”

From Penny Young, Deputy Chair, UK Statistics Authority, letter of 20 January 2026. Read the full letter.

The words the letter quotes

The letter quotes 1 passage from the public record:

“we have not got significant backlogs in our magistrates’ courts”.”

Records the letter links to

• quarterly criminal court statistics

Correspondence

• The letter it answered: Max Wilkinson MP to Penny Young – magistrate court statistics (2 December 2025)

More on Max Wilkinson.

Receipt