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1126553

registered interest
date	14/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Offences against Children: Trials
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether he has made an assessment of the potential effect on victims of historical child sexual abuse of providing them with an alternative to court proceedings involving a jury trial.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	254206
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2019 answer text <p>Tackling historical sexual abuse and bringing perpetrators to justice is a government priority. It is vital that victims are provided with support to cope and recover from the impact of crime, regardless of whether they choose to report the crime to the police.</p><p> </p><p>The right of defendants in Crown Court cases to be tried by their peers is a fundamental part of our justice system and the government has no plans to interfere with it.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 20/05/2019 13:30:12 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1126554

registered interest
date	14/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Offences against Children: Trials
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether advice and training is in place for jury members deciding on cases of historical childhood sexual abuse; and if he will make a statement.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	254207
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 20/05/2019 answer text <p>Juries are randomly selected, independent and make decisions purely on the basis of the facts presented to them by the prosecution and defence. Jury members receive no advice or training prior to being called to serve on any case. However, they are guided and supported by the trial judge who advises them on the relevant points of law and reminds them of their role.</p><p>Judges hearing serious sex offence cases are required to have specialist training and specific instructions on how to direct the jury in sexual offence cases are available.</p><p> </p><p>There is guidance provided to judges in the Crown Court Compendium (a publicly available document) as to what directions may be given to juries in appropriate circumstances.</p><p> </p><p>https://www.judiciary.uk/publications/crown-court-compendium-published-december-2018/</p> answering member constituency Blackpool North and Cleveleys answering member printed Paul Maynard question first answered 20/05/2019 16:06:12 answering member 3926 label Biography information for Paul Maynard
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1126189

registered interest
date	13/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Sexual Offences: Legal Representation
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, under what circumstances in cases involving historical sexual abuse are victims entitled to legal representation.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	253582
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>The Government’s first ever cross-government Victims Strategy outlines our commitments to victims of crime.</p><p> </p><p>The Crown Prosecution Service is responsible for the prosecution of criminal cases. Victims of crime are not separately represented in criminal trials.</p><p> </p><p>Victims of historic sexual abuse have access to an independent sexual violence adviser (ISVA). The ISVA’s role is to ensure the victim receives the right support before, during and after legal proceedings. As part of proceedings, a victim may be called to give evidence as a witness for the prosecution. ISVAs will work alongside the Court-Based Witness Service to support the victim to give their best evidence and participate in the court process.</p><p> </p><p>In April this year, the Ministry of Justice awarded £8m in funding to rape support centres to provide emotional and practical support to victims of sexual violence and historic sexual abuse, including the provision of ISVA services. We also provided a grant of £11.2m to Citizens Advice for the delivery of the Court-Based Witness Service.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 16/05/2019 16:44:33 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1126190

registered interest
date	13/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Criminal Proceedings: Sexual Offences
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, under what circumstances in cases involving historical sexual abuse are victims entitled to have character references used in their defence.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	253583
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>Tackling historical sexual abuse and bringing perpetrators to justice is a government priority.</p><p> </p><p>Some victims of historical sexual abuse may be called to give evidence in criminal trials however a victim is not a party to a criminal case, as the Crown prosecutes. Victims and witnesses are not required to defend themselves or provide evidence to support their statements.</p><p>Rules of evidence do not permit the Crown to call evidence of the good character of a prosecution witness in order to bolster their credibility where it is not relevant to an issue in the case.</p><p>If the defendant attacks the character of a witness, evidence of the defendant’s bad character may be admissible as evidence.</p><p> </p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 16/05/2019 16:31:42 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1126191

registered interest
date	13/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Sexual Offences: Victims
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what protections exist for victims of historical sexual abuse where the perpetrator remains living in the victim's locality.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	253584
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>Protection orders are an important tool for keeping victims safe and preventing the continuation or escalation of violence.</p><p> </p><p>Protections for victims of sexual offences, including historic abuse include:</p><ul><li>Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements, which are in place to ensure the successful management of violent and sexual offenders in the community.</li><li>Sexual Harm Prevention Orders, which can be used to impose a range of restrictions on sexual offenders, including travel restrictions.</li><li>Sexual Risk Orders, which can be used to impose restrictions on individuals who have done an act of a sexual nature and, as a result, pose a risk of harm to the public in the UK or children or vulnerable adults abroad. For a Sexual Risk Order to be imposed, the individual does not need to have committed an offence.</li><li>Sex Offender Notification Requirements, which require offenders to provide certain information to the police, for example notifying them if the offender is living in a household with a person under the age of 18.</li></ul><p> </p><p>Additionally, the Victim Contact Scheme is available to victims of violent and sexual offences where the offender receives a sentence of 12 months or more. The scheme provides victims with information and advice about the criminal justice process – including being kept informed of key stages of the offender's sentence and to advise on victim-related conditions that can be attached to the offender's release licence. Conditions can be around non-contact or excluding the offender from entering specific locations such as areas where the victim lives or works. The offender risks being recalled to prison should they breach any licence conditions.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 16/05/2019 14:08:07 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1126192

registered interest
date	13/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Criminal Proceedings: Sexual Offences
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what guidance and training barristers receive on the cross-examination of victims of historical sexual abuse.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	253585
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 16/05/2019 answer text <p>Inns of Court College of Advocacy (ICCA) has developed specialist training for all advocates who question witnesses in cases of a serious sexual nature involving vulnerable adults and children. The training programme goes beyond victims of serious sexual offences. It aims to ensure all advocates understand the key principles of how to approach and question vulnerable people in the justice system</p><p>As set out in the Government’s Victims Strategy, the training programme delivers the manifesto commitment: “Publicly funded advocates will have specialist training in handling victims before taking on serious sexual offences” and goes beyond that commitment. Training is available to all advocates, not just those working on publicly funded cases.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 16/05/2019 16:41:56 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1126193

registered interest
date	13/05/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Criminal Proceedings: Sexual Offences
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on the wellbeing of victims of sexual assault of undergoing cross-examination during the court process.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	253586
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 21/05/2019 answer text <p>In the Government’s first ever cross-government Victim’s Strategy, we committed to make the court environment more victim friendly and to improve access to special measures.</p><p>Victims may be provided with a wide range of special measures to help them give their best evidence in court. The measures available include the power for a court to order arrangements for live video links, video recorded evidence in chief, and screens around the witness box, and from this summer an additional special measure - pre-recorded cross-examination - will be will be available for witnesses who are adult complainants in sexual offences, in three courts - Liverpool, Leeds and Kingston upon Thames. This marks delivery of another commitment in the Victims Strategy published in September 2018.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 21/05/2019 14:53:25 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1123842

registered interest
date	30/04/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Young Offenders: Protection
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to paragraph 211 of the IICSA report Sexual Abuse of Children in Custodial Institutions: 2009–2017, published February 2019, what the terms of reference are of the safeguarding review being carried out on the children’s secure estate; what date the review was established; and what the timetable is for the report from that review to be published.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	249316
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/05/2019 answer text <p>The Youth Custody Service’s internal safeguarding review was established in April 2018, under the following Terms of Reference:</p><p> </p><ol><li>Review, and where appropriate revise, the current operational policies for Safeguarding within the Youth Secure Estate;</li><li>Review the processes for handling allegations and complaints, including but not limited to, access, response, investigation and the support offered to children and young people</li><li>Review the corporate governance structures for safeguarding given the transfer of functions from the Youth Justice Board (YJB) to the Youth Custody Service (YCS)</li><li>Review the staff recruitment and vetting procedures in place and systems for referral to the Disclosure and Barring Service.</li><li>Review the safeguarding training offer and arrangements for all staff</li><li>Review information sharing arrangements between different departments within establishments, for example between Safeguarding and Security teams.</li><li>Ensure the YCS is compliant with and executing its duties in relation to the Working Together guidance issued by the Department for Education, and any other relevant statutory requirements</li><li>Scope and establish working relationships with relevant external stakeholders. For example, the chairs of Local Safeguarding Children Boards on the custodial care of children; Association of Directors of Children’s Services; YJB etc.</li><li>Make recommendations on policies, processes and procedures, as deemed necessary to improve safeguarding measures for children and young people</li><li>Share and disseminate good practice with staff across the youth secure estate, in line with the YCS’s emerging continuous improvement model.</li></ol><p> </p><p>The YCS safeguarding report is in the process of being finalised and I will write to you when the report has been submitted to me.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 07/05/2019 15:46:54 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1123256

registered interest
date	25/04/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Child Sexual Abuse Independent Panel Inquiry
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking in response to the findings and recommendations of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse’s investigation into child custodial institutions.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	247716
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 01/05/2019 answer text <p>The findings in the Inquiry’s report are shocking. The safety and welfare of children across all aspects of the youth justice system is a priority for government. We are already conducting an urgent review into safeguarding in the youth custodial estate and we have commissioned an independent review of pain inducing restraint techniques. We are also rolling out new specialist training and a specific qualification for staff working in the secure estate as part of a wide programme of reform, but we recognise further action is needed. We will carefully consider all the report’s recommendations and respond in due course.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 01/05/2019 10:15:23 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar previous answer version 115888 answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck

1122520

registered interest
date	23/04/2019
answering body	Ministry of Justice
answering dept id	54
answering dept short name	Justice
answering dept sort name	Justice
hansard heading	Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme Review
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the timetable is for the launch of the consultation on the review of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme to ensure the right compensation for victims of violent crime.
tabling member constituency	South Shields
tabling member printed	Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck
uin	246530
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 29/04/2019 answer text <p>The Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme review was announced in September 2018. Work on the review is currently ongoing and we are committed to consulting this year on proposals.</p> answering member constituency Charnwood answering member printed Edward Argar question first answered 29/04/2019 10:02:30 answering member 4362 label Biography information for Edward Argar
tabling member	4277 label Biography information for Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck