MAJOR problems and backlogs within the sheriff court system have been identified during a nationwide probe.

Audit Scotland carried out a survey into the workings of the country's then 43 sheriff courts during the past fiscal year.

And they found that reduced budgets and more complex cases are pushing the system towards breaking point.

During 2014/15 the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service budget was reduced by 14 per cent.

And the Scottish Court Services budget was slashed by 28 per cent.

The budget cuts led to the closure, locally, of both Peebles and Duns courts.

It was claimed at the time that the closures would lead to a more stream-lined judicial system.

But the relocation of court business to Selkirk and Jedburgh, respectively, has not stemmed the mounting backlogs and growing problems.

During the in-depth survey Audit Scotland found that around half of all summary cases in sheriff courts didn't proceed as planned, and around one third of victims and witnesses they interviewed had to attend court on more than two occasions for the same case.

In the Lothian and Borders sheriffdom only 62 per cent of summary cases were concluded within the 26-week target during 2014/15 - a drop of eight per cent from 2013/14 - and below the Scottish average.

The average time for a summary case to reach conclusion in Peebles was just over 15 weeks before its closure at the start of this year.

Selkirk Sheriff Court's summary cases took an average of 16 weeks to conclude, with Duns, before its closure, at 21 weeks and Jedburgh just under 20 weeks during 2014/15.

Borders MSP John Lamont believes a lot of the additional pressure comes in light of ten courts closing across the country. He said: “It’s clear from this report that courts in the Borders are under increasing pressure as a result of the SNP forcing through court closures.

“The Scottish government was warned by opposition MSPs, legal experts and victims groups that closures would harm access to justice and cause delays.

“This report will be difficult reading for the Justice Secretary because it confirms court closures have damaged access to justice in the Borders. It is no wonder courts are struggling after the SNP has decimated the Court Service’s budget by 28 per cent.

“The SNP claim to stand up for local services, but their actions show they actually value centralisation over local justice. These delays are only going to get worse without adequate investment.”

Nationally, the estimated annual cost of prosecuting sheriff court cases is now over £200 million, with an estimated £10 million being spent on unnecessarily repeating stages of the process ahead of trial.

Audit Scotland recommend a fresh look at both the current processing systems and the way performance is measured.

Caroline Gardner, Auditor General for Scotland, said: "Scotland's sheriff courts are an important part of our justice system, experienced by thousands of people, including victims and witnesses, every year.

"Like many parts of the public sector, the sheriff court system is facing falling budgets. Together with an increasing focus on cases which are more complex, this is putting pressure on the system as a whole.

"To deal with this, all the bodies involved in our sheriff court system must continue to develop how they work together, both nationally and locally."

During 2014/15 there were 45 summary cases heard at Peebles and Duns dealt with 74 before their closures.

Throughout the year there were 494 summary cases and 19 more serious solemn cases conducted at Selkirk.

In Jedburgh there were 350 summary cases and nine solemn cases.

Audit Scotland found that over the past four years the number of sexual crimes has increased by over 80 per cent.

And they believe the delays in cases being concluded is partly down to the complexities of sex crimes.

A spokeswoman for Audit Scotland said: "This is, in part, due to a greater focus on more complex cases involving domestic abuse and historic sexual offences, and a subsequent rise in reporting of these types of crimes."

The report, which was published yesterday, concluded that the recent establishment of the Scottish Government's Justice Board has improved joint working between key national bodies and management of the court system .

And they are calling for similar work to be undertaken at a local level.

Local MSP Christine Grahame, who chairs the Justice Committee at Holyrood, revealed that additional money had been committed by the Scottish Government to speed up cases involving domestic abuse and sexual offences.

She said: "The Scottish Government’s budget has suffered cuts from Westminster since the banking crisis and faces a further 7 per cent reduction.

"Despite this, it has invested £2.4 million in the current year to enable swift progress of cases of domestic abuse and sexual offences as has been recognised in Audit Scotland’s report.

"It is also protecting the Legal Aid budget unlike south of the border, ensuring that not just the well-off can have access to justice.

"Hard choices have been made in the face of these swingeing cuts to the Scottish Government’s budget.

"Making serious offences a priority while supporting those through Legal Aid to cross the court room thresh-hold are the right choices in a bad financial settlement from Westminster.”