Source · Select Committees · Home Affairs Committee
Recommendation 33
33
Accepted
Paragraph: 166
Significant obstacles hinder successful national roll-out of Section 28 for vulnerable witnesses.
Recommendation
It is evident that even when people’s cases do make it to court, their experience of the trial can be very difficult. We welcome the national roll-out of section 28 of the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 to intimidated witnesses (victims of adult sexual offences and modern slavery). This will make a significant difference to complainants’ experiences of the criminal justice system. However, we would urge the Government to consider the obstacles to a successful roll-out—for example, the availability of counsel—in consultation with the legal sector, including the judiciary, the Bar Council and the Criminal Bar Association, and the means of overcoming these obstacles. The outcome of this piece of work should be published with the next Rape Review Progress Update.
Government Response Summary
The government is rolling out section 28 nationally to all Crown Courts for sexual offence and modern slavery complainants and is engaging with criminal justice stakeholders, including counsel, to address implementation obstacles. The Ministry of Justice is also consulting on changes to the legal aid fee scheme to reflect section 28 work.
Paragraph Reference:
166
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
As stated in our second Rape Review Progress Update, we have gone beyond the ambition in the Rape Review to extend the pilot of section 28 for sexual and modern slavery complainants to four more Crown Courts. In September 2021 we extended the pilot to four more Crown Courts, and since December 2021 we have been working to roll out section 28 to all Crown Courts for this cohort. The first phase of this rollout began on 31 March, and following two further phases in May and June, section 28 is now available in 37 Crown Courts in total. Over the coming months, we will continue to roll out section 28 nationally for sexual offence and modern slavery complainants to all Crown Courts. We will engage the police and CPS to ensure the readiness of each Circuit area as part of a phased expansion. The Ministry of Justice is working with the full range of criminal justice stakeholders, including counsel, to address the concerns that were raised in the Committee’s report, and make the necessary operational changes to deliver section 28 rollout. The Lord Chief Justice has also issued a revised section 28 practice direction to give judges greater flexibility to balance listing pressures with the measures needed to best support vulnerable and intimidated witnesses. Sir Christopher Bellamy’s independent review of criminal legal aid found a concern among barristers that the present fee scheme does not reimburse them for the additional time required to appear in a case involving a section 28 hearing. The Ministry of Justice is consulting on proposed changes to the fee scheme in response to Sir Christopher’s review. The consultation asks for views on how the fee scheme could be remodelled to reflect section 28 work.