Select committee: Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 13
Eighth Report - Investigation and prosecution of rape
Published 12 Apr 2022
Paragraph 94
Addressed to Home Office
Home Affairs Committee Investigation and prosecution of rape All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
In light of the challenges deaf survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence told us they had experienced when engaging with the police, we would also urge the Home Office to undertake work with police forces across England and Wales to understand what provisions are currently in place to enable police officers to support deaf victims of crime as effectively as possible, and to ensure adequate provisions are made available where they are not yet on offer. It is important that forces operate emergency and non- emergency SMS text or Video Relay Services (VRS), so deaf people can communicate with the police when needed, especially in emergencies, and that the police always engage British Sign Language or BSL interpreters when BSL is the first or preferred language of a deaf person being supported by the police, or Lipspeakers for those who lipread as their primary means of communication. The police should also have regard to the particular requirements of those who do not have English or BSL as their first language, but who may use other spoken or signed languages. The Home Office must update us on this piece of work within the next 12 months.
From: Home Affairs Committee, Eighth Report - Investigation and prosecution of rape (HC 193), paragraph 94, 12 April 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 25 July 2022 (deadline 12 June 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government's response to the Committee's report says it has made "important progress" under its Rape Review Action Plan, and it agrees with some recommendations while stating that others are for Chief Constables, the judiciary or ongoing work to determine.
- On governance, it "welcome[s] and agree[s]" with the recommendation to write to the Committee every six months, in line with the cycle of Rape Review Progress Update publications.
- On specialist police rape teams, it "agrees that specialism is crucial" but says Chief Constables "remain best placed to make decisions about the local deployment of resources".
- On a sexual violence commissioner, it recognises "there may be benefits", says the Home Office and Ministry of Justice are considering the recommendation, and will "update the Committee on progress in due course".
- On Operation Soteria, it commits £5m this year, with a national operating model for rape investigation "by June 2023", though adoption "will be a decision for operationally independent forces".