Source · Select Committees · Justice Committee
Recommendation 13
13
Rejected
Paragraph: 41
Strengthen provisions addressing agency non-compliance with the Victims’ Code within the Bill.
Recommendation
As drafted, the Bill fails to adequately address the issue of agencies’ non-compliance with the Code—we are concerned by this given that it is one of the principal reasons for the Bill. We have already recommended strengthening the principles in clause 2; that recommendation, combined with an increase to the powers of the Victims’ Commissioner, which we discuss elsewhere in this Report, may go some way to improving levels of compliance with the Code. However, we recommend that the Government gives further consideration to this crucial aspect of the Bill before presenting it to Parliament.
Government Response Summary
The government rejects the recommendation to give further consideration to agencies' non-compliance with the Code, stating that existing safeguards and new oversight provisions in Clause 5 will encourage compliance, making further changes unnecessary.
Paragraph Reference:
41
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government
Rejected
15. The draft Bill sets out the principles that will underpin the new Code to raise its profile and to send a clear signal to criminal justice agencies on what victims can and should rightly expect from them. The principles protect the Code’s underlying purpose, while allowing flexibility to be able to strengthen the detailed entitlements set out in regulations or the Code itself. There is already a safeguard in legislation, restated in Clause 3(9) of the draft Bill, which prevents changes to the Code which would significantly reduce the quality or extent of services for victims, or significantly limit those who are entitled to receive them. We consider that this, taken together with the new oversight and monitoring provisions set out in Clause 5, will encourage the desired culture change to ensure compliance with the Code. We therefore do not consider that any changes are necessary.