Select committee: Justice Committee
Recommendation 4
Second Report - Pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Victims Bill
Published 30 Sep 2022
Paragraph 15
Addressed to Ministry of Justice
Justice Committee Pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Victims Bill All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
The existing Code makes no reference to rights for secondary victims of crime, specifically rape-conceived persons. Clause 2(4) sets out that the Code may make provision for those not defined as ‘victims’ in clause 1. This provides scope to extend Code entitlements to children born of rape but as drafted lacks the necessary assurances that this will happen and, being unsighted on any draft of an updated Code, we cannot be reassured that provisions in the Code will be extended to that group. We recommend that both the Bill and an updated Code make specific reference to the inclusion of rights under the Code for children born of rape.
From: Justice Committee, Second Report - Pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Victims Bill (HC 304), paragraph 15, 30 September 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 19 January 2023 (deadline 30 November 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The Government says it will take forward a number of the Committee's recommendations, including amending the Bill, while stating that "we do not consider that any changes are necessary" on several others.
- On the definition of a victim, the Government "will amend the Bill to include bereaved families" and intends to reference persons born as a result of rape in the Bill and the new Code.
- It does not consider changes necessary on immigration data sharing, citing a Home Office Review, and says it "will consider" a statutory code of practice and Migrant Victim Protocol being developed by the Home Office.
- It declines to give victims a right to access restorative justice, stating "we do not consider that a right to access restorative justice is practical or appropriate" because participation must be voluntary and agreed as safe.
- It will amend the Bill to retain the Victims' Commissioner's duty to oversee the Code nationally and to require agencies to respond to all the Commissioner's reports, "ahead of introduction".