The Victim Contact Scheme enables victims of offenders who receive a sentence of imprisonment of 12 months or more or a hospital order, for violent or sexual offences, to be informed at key stages of the offender\u2019s sentence. Key stages include any transfer to open prison conditions. Victims will also be informed of the prospective date of release.<\/p>
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Where the offender is serving a determinate sentence, the release date is fixed. Victims will be informed of the expected month of release very early following sentence and will be updated should this date change - for example, if the offender receives added days.<\/p>
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Where the offender is subject to discretionary release by the Parole Board, the victim will be informed early in the sentence of the month in which the offender will become eligible for consideration for release, and be informed of the Parole Board\u2019s decision, including if this is to release the offender.<\/p>
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Where release is subject to a Parole Board hearing the victim has the right to make a Victim Personal Statement. The Victim Personal Statement (VPS) provides victims with a valuable opportunity to tell the Parole Board how the prisoner\u2019s offence has affected them or their family and what the impact of the prisoner\u2019s release will be on them. The victim can apply to the Parole Board to read the VPS in person, with the presumption that the Parole Board will agree to this. The right to make a VPS to the Parole Board, and to apply to read it in person, was enshrined in the revised Victims Code which was published in October 2013.<\/p>
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The Victim Contact Scheme also provides a statutory right for victims to make representations about the licence conditions that should be in place on release, to reassure and protect them, and to be informed which conditions have been included on the licence as a result of their request. These will typically be exclusion zones to reduce the risks of unexpected contact, and to prohibit contact with the victim.<\/p>
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The National Offender Management Service does not record information centrally in relation to the number of victims who make a VPS and has not made an estimate of this number.<\/p>
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In September this year, we published \u201cOur Commitment to Victims\u201d undertaking to do more to help victims navigate the criminal justice system, access the information and support they need, protect vulnerable victims and witnesses in court and to guarantee their rights in law.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1453", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Andrew Selous"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "South West Bedfordshire"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Andrew Selous"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2015-01-05", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2015-01-05T17:41:09.773Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "54"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Justice"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2014-12-18", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Prisoners' Release"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many victims of crime were consulted before the perpetrator was released in each of the last three years.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1565", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sir Philip Davies"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Shipley"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Philip Davies"} ], "uin" : "219535"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/170537", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department for Transport"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/170537/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
An electronic copy of the count data for the years from 2010 to 2013 has been placed in the Library. At this time, the data for 2014 has not yet been processed and validated.<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1562", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sir Robert Goodwill"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Scarborough and Whitby"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Mr Robert Goodwill"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2014-12-18", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2014-12-18T14:12:58.727Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "27"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Transport"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Transport"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2014-12-15", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Road Traffic: Shipley"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 15 December 2014 to Question 217665, if he will place in the Library a copy of the results of the traffic counts in Shipley constituency.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1565", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sir Philip Davies"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Shipley"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Philip Davies"} ], "uin" : "218816"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/169856", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department of Health"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/169856/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The draft regulations for standardised packaging of tobacco were notified to the European Commission under the Technical Standards Directive (Directive 98/34/EC) on 29 August 2014. 11 member states provided detailed opinions in response to the United Kingdom notification. These detailed opinions are now being considered carefully. The UK will respond to the detailed opinions in due course, as specified by the Technical Standards Directive.<\/p>
<\/p>"} , "answeringMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/3918", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Jane Ellison"} } , "answeringMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Battersea"} , "answeringMemberPrinted" : {"_value" : "Jane Ellison"} , "dateOfAnswer" : {"_value" : "2014-12-17", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "isMinisterialCorrection" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "questionFirstAnswered" : [{"_value" : "2014-12-17T17:44:52.133Z", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} ]} , "answeringDeptId" : {"_value" : "17"} , "answeringDeptShortName" : {"_value" : "Health"} , "answeringDeptSortName" : {"_value" : "Health"} , "date" : {"_value" : "2014-12-11", "_datatype" : "dateTime"} , "hansardHeading" : {"_value" : "Tobacco: Packaging"} , "houseId" : {"_value" : "1"} , "legislature" : [{"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/terms/25259", "prefLabel" : {"_value" : "House of Commons"} } ], "questionText" : "To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment he has made of the detailed responses from EU Member States to the UK's notification to the EU of proposed regulations for standardised packaging of tobacco products.", "registeredInterest" : {"_value" : "false", "_datatype" : "boolean"} , "tablingMember" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/members/1565", "label" : {"_value" : "Biography information for Sir Philip Davies"} } , "tablingMemberConstituency" : {"_value" : "Shipley"} , "tablingMemberPrinted" : [{"_value" : "Philip Davies"} ], "uin" : "218373"} , {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/169527", "AnsweringBody" : [{"_value" : "Department of Health"} ], "answer" : {"_about" : "http://data.parliament.uk/resources/169527/answer", "answerText" : {"_value" : "
The draft regulations for standardised packaging of tobacco were notified to the European Commission under the Technical Standards Directive (Directive 98/34/EC) on 29 August. This procedure allows other member states and the European Commission to examine the draft regulations and provide comments or detailed opinions.<\/p>
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The notification and information about which member states responded can be found at:<\/p>
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