In a letter to the Minister for
Policing and Crime Prevention, MP, the cross-party House of
Lords Public Services Committee has told the Government that
there is a missed opportunity for a more efficient,
standardised process for police and the courts when creating and
using interview transcripts. The conclusion comes after
a brief inquiry which focused on the process underpinning the
creation and use of transcripts, and not the work of the
transcribers who produce the transcripts.
The Committee has made a number of recommendations to the
Government including;
- There should be a national guidance or frameworks to
standardise how transcripts should be produced and used.
- Standardised and universal training should be provided for
those who create transcripts.
- There needs to be a clear understanding in each force of how
transcripts are checked, and by whom, to reduce duplication, but
ensure quality.
- Develop a clear and rigorous quality assurance process which
shows where responsibility sits for the quality of individual
transcripts within the police and the Crown Prosecution Service.
- Prioritise equipment upgrades in police stations and
courtrooms to enable the use of audio-visual recordings from
suspect interviews and lessen the reliance on transcripts.
- Harness the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to
alleviate pressure on the criminal justice system.
, Chair of the
Public Services Committee said;
“During the course of this short inquiry, we heard evidence about
several issues with the process of creating and using police
transcripts of suspect interviews as evidence during criminal
trials. Firstly, we heard about issues in relation to how they
are produced, with some police forces across the country
producing full transcripts of suspect interviews while others
only produce a summary. In addition, initial audio-visual
recordings of suspect interviews were sometimes of such poor
quality that they were not fit to be played in court, or the
court itself did not have decent enough equipment to play those
recordings if they were good quality recordings.
“While we heard that there are sufficient checks and balances
within the criminal trial process to prevent miscarriages of
justice or any defendant suffering legal prejudice due to the use
of transcripts, it is clear that there are improvements that
could be made to the trial process to alleviate pressure on an
already over-burdened criminal justice system.
“We've asked for the Government to work with the relevant police
regulatory and training bodies and government agencies to provide
standardised guidance and best practice so that the process of
creating and using transcripts can be more efficient. We've also
asked that further reviews of the criminal court system should
acknowledge the use of transcripts and audio evidence as key
elements in the justice system and include them as part of any
future reform. With the continued development of AI and other
technological advances, the Government must also ensure that the
police station and courts are equipped to harness any upcoming
advantages.
“We look forward to receiving a response to our letter early next
year and will be following up on our recommendations thereafter.”
