The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice ():...I am grateful to my hon.
Friend for his engagement on this issue. Thanks to his
intervention and those of campaigners, and his tireless work to
ensure that victims are given the right opportunities to
participate in restorative justice, I am pleased today, at the
Dispatch Box, to commit to the following changes. I will ensure
that our new commissioning guidance for Police
and Crime Commissioners due to be published next year
will include specific information on restorative justice services
so that those responsible for funding services understand these
services when considering how best to address local need...
(Redditch) (Con):...Before I
begin, I put on record my thanks for the exceptional work of the
criminal justice agencies in my Redditch
constituency—particularly Inspector Rich Field and his team of
officers; the police and crime commissioner,
; and support services such as
the Sandycroft centre and its head of wellbeing—who work
tirelessly to support victims of crime...
(North East Bedfordshire)
(Con):...I hope that extends to my new clause 41, which would,
for the first time across the UK, provide for independent legal
advice and representation for victims of rape and sexual assault.
My new clause builds on the findings from the scheme trialled in
Northumbria, under the leadership of the Police
and Crime Commissioners Dame and . The findings demonstrate
that a significant proportion of requests for information for
rape complainants’ private data were excessive; that those
excessive requests had a significant impact on the wellbeing of
victims; and that the legal guidance on the matter was not
clearly understood, which led to wide variations in approach...
(Somerton and Frome)
(LD):...Simple numbers in uniforms is not enough without thorough
vetting and training, ensuring that all officers responding to
victims and handling investigations do not perpetuate rape myths,
accentuate victim trauma and mishandle evidence. My constituents
must have the confidence that police and judicial officers have
received thorough and appropriate training, and that they will be
treated with due respect and regard by our justice apparatus in
the most traumatic moments of their life. I therefore urge the
Government to back new clause 29, tabled by my hon. Friend the
Member for Edinburgh West (), and to support Liberal
Democrat policies to improve community trust in police, to create
the pipeline of trust by educating police officers, and to fund
more community police officers by cutting Police
and Crime Commissioners...
For context, OPEN HERE
