Speeches and Statements
How Government is addressing sexual violence and abuse
Speech by Vernon Coaker, Home Office minister, on how the Government is addressing sexual violence, to the London Criminal Justice Board in February 2008.
I would like to thank the London Criminal Justice Board for inviting me to speak today.
Rape is a horrendous crime; it is often thought of as low volume but it is more common that many people think. It is also one of the most devastating offences for victims and inspires fear in communities. It violates the basic right of women, men and children to be treated with dignity and respect and to have control over their bodies. The Government is committed to creating a society where these rights are upheld.
On 18 February, the Home Secretary published a 3-year Action Plan for Tackling Violence (new window). It identified priority areas of work; one of which is sexual violence. We committed, in that plan, to focus on improving the criminal justice response by driving forward work to improve the investigation and prosecution of rape and focus on areas where performance is poor.
In addition, the Government’s Public Service Agreements for 2008-11 on “Making Communities Safer (new window)” and “Justice for All (new window)” set out our commitment to prioritise action to tackle the most serious violent, and sexual, offences at both a local, and national, level.
So our commitment is clear.
As many of you will know, this work is already underway. A range of actions to improve the investigation and prosecution of rape, and other forms of sexual violence, was set out in the cross-government Action Plan on Sexual Violence and Abuse (new window) which was published in April last year. Significant progress has been made since then, both at a national strategic level and also at a local delivery level and it is those developments that I would like to talk about today.
Nationally
At a national level we have introduced a range of measures to improve the criminal justice response to rape and other serious sexual offences. In particular we have:
introduced specially trained officers and specialist rape prosecutors in every area and improved training and guidance for the police and the Crown Prosecution Service;
Introduced sexual offences training for all barristers prosecuting in serious sexual offence cases;
supported police forces to develop an action plan to implement the recommendations of “Without Consent” the report of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Her Majesty’s Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate on the investigation and prosecution of rape which was published in January 2007;
Established, within the Crown Prosecution Service, a specialist Rape Prosecutions Delivery Unit;
Established a ‘Rape Performance Group’ to manage local performance on the investigation and prosecution of rape. This group comprises members from the Home Office, the Office for Criminal Justice Reform, ACPO, CPS, HMIC and HMCPSI as well as an academic from the London Metropolitan University. It’s function is to establish the stages at which attrition occurs in rape cases and identify and engage those areas that would benefit from additional support to tackle this issue. That group reports quarterly to the National Criminal Justice Board.
Support for victims
We are also providing more support for victims. One of the key causes of attrition in rape cases is the withdrawal of the victim. As such it is important to ensure that victims receive support throughout the criminal justice process. Over the last year we have spent £3m to supplement local funding to:
Extend the network of Sexual Assault Referral Centres to ensure that victims receive medical care and counselling and can assist the police investigation through a forensic examination. There are currently 19 SARCS and there are a further 17 under development;
Pilot Independent Sexual Violence Advisors in 38 areas to provide advocacy and support for victims;
Provide funding though the Victims Fund for voluntary organisations supporting victims of sexual violence;
We have also introduced measures resulting from the “Convicting Rapists” consultation which reported at the end of last year which has included strengthening the law on hearsay evidence, allowing video-recorded testimony of adult victims of rape to be automatically admissible as evidence at trial and considering ways in which general expert evidence material could be presented to juries to help to dispel myths as to how victims behave following a rape;
We are also rolling out the use of intermediaries to help vulnerable witnesses give evidence and extending the use of victim personal statements.
Prevention
I would also like to mention the work we are doing to prevent rape and sexual violence from occurring. I am sure that many of you will be aware of a survey published in 2005 by Amnesty International which showed that a third of people in the UK believe that a woman is partially or totally responsible for being raped if she has been flirting, drinking or has worn revealing clothing.
Addressing these attitudes must start in the education system. All secondary schools are required to deliver sex and relationship education and by the end of 2009 we expect all schools to qualify as “healthy schools” meaning that specific standards must be met for personal, social and health education.
We must also challenge the behaviour of the minority of men who think it is acceptable to have sex without consent. In 2006 the Government ran a hard hitting and effective campaign stressing the importance of active consent to sex. We are continuing to look at what more we can do to address myths and stereotypes.
London Criminal Justice Board
So we have made some good progress but it’s important that we ensure that the policies and strategies developed at a national level are implemented at a local level. The Without Consent report I mentioned earlier, made a telling observation. It stated that in many respects, the policies in place are sound but we must ensure that what should be done is actually being done in practice. The role of Local Criminal Justice Board’s are incredibly important in doing so and I welcome the leadership that the London Criminal Justice Board has shown by committing to improve the London criminal justice service response to rape cases.
So finally I would like to say a little bit about what has been happening in London.
Firstly, I would like to thank Richard [Sumray] for chairing the London Criminal Justice Board’s Rape Convictions Working Group and for those of you who are members of the group for your work in producing a report and recommendations on the improvements that can be made. I was very pleased to see that the majority of these recommendations reflected those made from Without Consent and the Cross-Government Action Plan on Sexual Violence and Abuse.
I would also like to thank those of you who are practitioners and dealing with rape victims every day. I mentioned the work that we have done to improve the investigation and prosecution of rape cases and to provide support to rape victims. This can be seen here in London with the development of the Havens, Project Sapphire and specialist rape advocates. And I am pleased to see from the programme that you will be hearing more about this excellent work throughout the day.
I would like to take this opportunity to mention the work of the Cold Case Rape Investigation Team here in London. Since 2003, the Metropolitan Police, Crown Prosecution Service and Forensic Science Service have worked together on pioneering techniques to investigate unsolved "cold case" rapes.
New investigation strategies and expert fingerprint analysis, together with DNA advances, specialist lawyers and changes in criminal law have all contributed to achieving this task.
Combining science-led process with a strong ethos of the victim, the cold case teams have revisited cases dating back to 1987 and, since September 2003 50 men have been convicted of 144 offences in London as a result of this work. The conviction rate for the team is 84 per cent.
This is an excellent example of what can be achieved by multi-agency working and it was recognised at the 2007 National Justice Awards when the team won Partnership of the Year award.
Effective partnership working across the criminal justice service is essential if we are to make sustainable improvements. I am therefore pleased to welcome the introduction of the first model protocol between the police and Crown Prosecution Service in the investigation and prosecution of allegations of rape which I understand will be signed-off shortly.
It is essential that the police and Crown Prosecution Service co-ordinate their efforts and co-operate with each other to investigate thoroughly and prosecute effectively those responsible. We are determined to take all possible action to ensure that this will happen.
This model protocol provides a framework within which the police and Crown Prosecution Service can work in partnership for the benefit of victims of rape. We are encouraging all Chief Officers of Police and Chief Crown Prosecutors to adopt this model in their area, tailored as necessary, to suit local circumstances.
Our aim is that local protocols will encourage better understanding and closer working relationships between those involved in the investigation and prosecution of rape allegations. We believe that they can also ensure more improved and consistent police and Crown Prosecution Service performance and contribute to improved confidence in the criminal justice system.
I thank you again for all the work you are doing to improve the criminal justice response to rape and hope you find the seminar today valuable.
