PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Trials (23 January 2015)

This Government is committed to putting the highest emphasis on victims’ needs.

We implemented a new Victims’ Code in December 2013 to give victims of crime clearer entitlements and a stronger voice. The Code entitles victims to make a personal statement about how the crime has affected them and to ask to read it aloud in court if the defendant is found guilty, and for bereaved close relatives to meet the CPS prosecutor before the trial. Also, victims attending court as witnesses are entitled to meet the CPS prosecutor and ask him or her questions about the court process, where circumstances permit.

In September 2014, the Government published ‘Our Commitment to Victims’. This included a commitment to enshrine the rights of victims in law by putting the key entitlements of the Victims’ Code into primary legislation, including the right to make a Victim Personal Statement and to request to read it out in court. Other key entitlements from the Victims’ Code which will be put into primary legislation include: early identification of priority victims and witnesses and assessment of their needs; automatic referral to the relevant support organisations; and information for victims about their case, at every stage.