Source · Select Committees · Justice Committee
Recommendation 48
48
Not Addressed
Victims Bill unlikely to achieve sufficient change given existing criminal justice backlogs
Conclusion
A principal purpose of the draft Bill is to improve victims’ experience of the criminal justice system but it is not clear that the Bill as drafted will do enough to achieve the change required. It has also been published against a backdrop of significant court backlogs, with victims of crime too often waiting years for their cases to come to court, and criminal legal aid advocates turning away from the profession. The Government is taking steps in tackling those deep-rooted problems but until they are resolved victims will continue to suffer harm for too long. (Paragraph 154) 60 Pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Victims Bill stniop gnitfarD :xennA noisulcnoc eettC esnopser JoM noitseuQ txeT esualC snosrep hcihw yfiralc ot devorpmi eb dluohs gnidroW .detoN dedeen sdrow yna erA ton seod noitces sihT“ )9(5 laitnetop diova ot seitud eht fo tnuocca ekat ot deen ohW ?”ekat“ erofeb erusolcsid a eriuqer .noisufnoc ekat“ dluohs tahw ro fi noitamrofni fo eht ”tnuocca otni dluow erusolcsid eht ?seitud tnaveler atad eht enevartnoc noitalsigel noitcetorp gninimreted ni tub( erusolcsid a rehtehw ekat ,os od dluow eht tnuocca otni siht yb desopmi seitud ”.)noitces snrecnoc siht taht yfiralc ot devorpmi eb dluohs gnidroW )d()5(01 noitces ni desu taht stcefler gnidrow sihT tahw raelcnu si tI eht fo retsiniM a…“ )c()11(5 .”snosirp“ fo noitinfied eht 1102 tcA ytilibisnopseR laicoS dna mrofeR eciloP tnaveler si ”gninaem“ gnisicrexe ni ,nworC seod“ nosirp a taht mrfinoc ot dednetni si hcihw gninaem eht ti si :ereh noitaler ni snoitcnuf ”.nosirp ecrof ria ro yratilim ,lavan a edulcni ton gnitimil – ”nosirp“ fo eht nihtiw( snosirp ot -non ot gninaem eht nosirP eht fo gninaem rednu snosirp yratilim ”…)2591 tcA 2591 AP eht fo )1(35s fo gninaem eht ro – ?”snoitcnuf“ laitnetop diova ot devorpmi eb dluohs gnidroW .detoN no tnemmoc eeS rehtehw gninimreted ni“ )01(6 .noisufnoc .)9(5 sesualc ,os od dluow erusolcsid a ”…tnuocca otni ekat .detcerroc eb dluohs rorre gnitfarD .detoN siht :tniop
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the low rate of victims reporting crimes and details how the Victims Bill aims to build confidence and trust by clarifying entitlements, increasing transparency, and improving support services. However, it does not directly address the committee's concern about the bill's sufficiency or the impact of court backlogs.
Government Response
Not Addressed
HM Government
Not Addressed
1. As many as three in five victims do not feel able to report the crimes that they suffer,1 and approximately a third withdraw at the police investigation stage.2 To tackle this, it is vital that we give victims the confidence and support needed to come forward to report crime and to stay engaged in the criminal justice system. 2. The Victims Bill is an important part of this work. It will deliver on the Government’s manifesto commitment to introduce and implement a Victims’ Law for the first time. The Bill and accompanying non-legislative measures that were announced in the consultation response aim to build victims’ confidence and trust in the criminal justice system. 3. The Bill contains measures which aim to: a) Make victims’ entitlements clearer: by enshrining the overarching principles of the Victims’ Code (“the Code”) in primary legislation, to send a clear signal about what victims can and should expect from the criminal justice system. b) Increase transparency and oversight of criminal justice agencies’ services to victims: through a duty on criminal justice agencies to review their compliance with the Code, by collecting information from persons assessing services under the Victims’ Code, with Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) taking a convening role in local compliance monitoring. Measures will also be included to improve national oversight including national scrutiny from the Victims’ Commissioner, regular joint inspections from inspectorates, and to simplify the complaints process. c) Improve support for victims: by improving the coordination of local support services and enhancing the roles of Independent Sexual Violence Advisors (ISVAs) and Independent Domestic Violence Advisors (IDVAs).