The 15 percent fee increase will see a typical criminal barrister earn £7,000 more a year while criminal solicitors will also receive a 15 percent fee rise across a range of their work, including that undertaken in police stations, magistrates’ courts and youth courts.

The legislation has been fast-tracked so legal professionals can see the pay rise before the end of the year with the new fees introduced at the end of September.

Justice Minister Sarah Dines said:

We are creating a sustainable legal aid system that is fit for the future and the typical criminal barrister will get a generous pay rise of £7,000 following a 15 percent fee increase.

The £135 million extra investment in legal aid will also help ensure that solicitors and other legal professionals are better paid for the important work they do to ensure victims get timely justice.

The remaining proposals in the recent consultation on criminal legal aid will be responded to later this year, with potential further increases for solicitors and other legal professionals as part of longer-term reforms, with £20 million set aside for this work.

Up to £74 million extra has been allocated to criminal legal aid per year over the last 4 years and the proposal to increase investment by £135 million a year is the biggest rise in a decade.

The Independent Review of Criminal Legal Aid found that, before expenses, the median fee of a criminal barrister in 2019-20 was £79,800 and that 80 percent earn at least £45,000 after expenses. While junior barristers earn much less in their first couple of years of practice, by their third year of practice the average criminal barrister will earn £65,000 before expenses.

The government is also investing £477 million into the justice system to reduce backlogs in the courts caused by the pandemic and has also removed the cap on how many days courts can sit for a second year. The investment means more trials can take place and the same decision last year meant that nearly 17,000 more days were sat in the Crown Court than the year prior to the pandemic.

Video technology has been rolled out to over 70 percent of all courtrooms and 3,265 virtual court rooms have been opened so that more hearings can take place.

Since May, magistrates have been able to sentence offenders to up to a year in prison, doubling their previous powers, helping to free up an estimated 1,700 extra sitting days of Crown Court time each year.

• Negotiations launched in London to upgrade trading relationship already worth £5 billion and supporting 6,600 UK businesses.
• UK services and digital sectors in line to reap the rewards of a fresh, modern agreement.
• Deal will put innovation at its heart, creating new opportunities for tech firms and professional services.

UK tech firms and services companies are set to benefit from a future UK-Israel trade deal, that will seek to establish a modern, revamped trading relationship between two of the world’s services superpowers.

International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan will launch negotiations today [20 July] between the UK and Israel for a new, innovation-focused Free Trade Agreement (FTA).

Israel has one of the fastest growing economies in the world and their demand for digital products and services is expected to grow rapidly. The UK’s existing bilateral FTA with Israel contains no specific provisions on services, creating a huge opportunity to enhance the agreement.

This includes boosting UK services exports to Israel by up to £78 million, from insurance to computer and technology services, supporting jobs and growing high-tech industries by reducing barriers to trade.

A new upgraded deal would expand a trading relationship already worth £5 billion a year. It could benefit 6,600 UK businesses, including 5,600 small and medium-sized enterprises, employing over 1.7 million people in 2020, who are exporting their goods to Israel by reducing trade barriers.

International Trade Secretary, Anne-Marie Trevelyan said:

The UK and Israel are both modern, hi-tech services superpowers, but our current trading relationship is based on an agreement from 1995, before smartphones, the internet, and digitally delivered services transformed the global economy.

We want a deal that will play to British strengths, while stimulating innovation and increasing opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises across the UK. Combining the power of our economies in a revamped trade deal will boost trade, support jobs and help take our economic relationship to the next level.

The Secretary of State will meet Israel’s Ambassador to the UK Tzipi Hotovely to launch the talks in London.

A bold new modernised deal could also provide greater economic opportunities for exporters across the UK regions and nations, including LEVC’s iconic electric black cabs in Coventry, Tomatin Distillery in Scotland, and Concrete Canvas in Wales.

Trade Strategy Partner for EY, Sally Jones said:

EY welcomes the intention to upgrade the Free Trade Agreement between the UK and Israel. This is an opportunity to put services, digital technology and innovation at the heart of the UK and Israel’s already-strong trading relationship. Both the UK and Israel are known for their vibrant tech and fintech sectors, which will both benefit from this new deal.

The UK’s world leading professional and business services sector is an unrivalled ecosystem which boosts competitiveness and facilitates international trade. With the opening-up of new trade and investment opportunities, businesses need to be looking at their trade strategies now to be able to seize these opportunities and drive economic prosperity.

Head of Tax and Trade Policy for Deloitte UK, Amanda Tickel said:

We welcome negotiations between the UK and Israel on an enhanced FTA, which could take our bilateral trade and investment relationship to a new level.

Both the UK and Israel are services-led economies with highly successful tech sectors, yet the existing terms of trade contain only limited provisions in these areas. This negotiation represents an exciting opportunity for UK services exporters, making it easier to trade across borders, to travel and work in each economy and support our digital innovators.

UK Managing Director at eToro, Daniel Moczulski said:

We are immensely proud of the journey that eToro has been on over the past 15 years, from an ambitious start-up in Tel Aviv to a thriving global brand and the world leading social investment network, with over 27 million registered users in more than 100 countries. A crucial part of this journey was eToro’s arrival in the UK, a market which has always encouraged innovation in the financial sector.

The UK market has become incredibly important to eToro’s business, and we are lucky to have a very talented team in London serving a large number of UK retail investors – we welcome the launch of UK-Israel trade talks to create more opportunities for innovators in both the UK and Israel.

Notes to editors

• In 2020, around 325 Israeli-owned businesses operating in the UK employed more than 7,000 people across the country. Its services sector has grown by over 45% in the last decade, and Israel’s total imports are expected to double by 2035.
• In the Northwest alone, over 1,300 businesses exported goods to Israel in 2020, with regional exports totalling £125 million in 2021. London exported goods to Israel worth £265 million in the same year, while Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland exported £92 million, £66 million, and £24 million of goods respectively.
• In 2020 the size of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from the UK in Israel was £1bn. Over the past 10 years 80% of UK outward FDI projects in Israel were in financial services, professional services and ICT & electronics.
• The FTA will complement the new UK-Israel Bilateral Roadmap, which promises to transform our relationship in the years ahead. We have agreed to work together on a new strategic plan spanning many areas of mutual interest such as science, innovation, defence, health, development, and climate change.
• Israel is also the global leader in R&D expenditure as a proportion of national income, spending almost 5% of GDP on it. And more international money than ever is flowing into UK tech – £29 billion in 2021.
• By the end of last year, the UK boasted no fewer than 115 tech unicorns, while Israel’s 53 tech unicorns and start-ups secured £18.5 billion of new funding in 2021. This has helped companies such as tech unicorn eToro to thrive in British markets.

The Department for Business Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) has today (Wednesday 20 July) published an independent review of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), led by Sir David Grant.

Launched in April 2018, UKRI is the government’s primary funder of research and innovation. It is composed of:

• the 7 disciplinary research councils
• Research England, which is responsible for supporting research and knowledge exchange at higher education institutions in England
• Innovate UK, the UK’s innovation agency

This is the first review of UKRI since its creation. The report comes following the publication of UKRI’s first 5-year strategy. Ministers and UKRI leadership have expressed their support for the review’s 18 recommendations, which include investment in harmonising IT systems, clarifying roles and responsibilities within UKRI and with BEIS, and further focus on demonstrating outcomes from their funding.

Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said:

I welcome Sir David’s recommendations. To support our ambition to establish the UK as a true Science Superpower, we have given UKRI its largest funding settlement ever, with over £25 billion across the next 3 years.

Our ambitions for a world-class research and innovation system require a world-class funder, which is why we will work closely with UKRI to deliver these recommendations and ensure they are equipped and ready to support those goals.

CEO of UKRI Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser said:

UKRI’s 5-year strategy sets out our clear ambition to be more effective, more efficient and to work in new and different ways to realise our full potential.

I warmly welcome the momentum that Sir David’s timely review adds to these efforts. His expert advice and careful recommendations will help us continue to strengthen UKRI in our work to fuel the UK’s outstanding research and innovation system.

I would like to thank Sir David and the review team that supported him for their tireless efforts and collaborative approach.

UKRI Chair Sir Andrew Mackenzie said:

David Grant’s review has offered valuable and timely support and challenge to the UKRI Board, highlighting opportunities for us to better steer UKRI to capitalise on the extraordinary research and innovation talent and creativity that will put the UK at the forefront of solutions to national and global challenges.

The review was led by Sir David Grant, supported by a secretariat in BEIS. Sir David was Chair of the National Physical Laboratory from 2015-2021, and Vice Chancellor of Cardiff University from 2001-2012.

The review forms part of the government’s Public Bodies Review Programme. These reviews are intended to ensure that arms-length bodies are contributing effectively to government objectives and operating in an efficient manner.

Read the full report and recommendations.