Backlog of rape and sexual offences in the crown courts is ‘totally unacceptable’, England’s chief prosecutor says
The backlog of rape and sexual offence cases in the nation’s crown courts is “totally unacceptable”, England’s chief prosecutor has said.
The new Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Parkinson said tackling the wait for justice is his “highest priority” as he unveiled a new survivor support programme.
Speaking to Sky News, Mr Parkinson said he is conscious of the impact of the delays: “I think it’s a huge problem.
“It affects the willingness of victims to support our cases. I’m afraid too often, defendants are taking advantage of the delays and just hoping that something will come up – in particular, that victims will withdraw.
“That’s why I think addressing delay and providing better support for victims are closely related.”
‘I think addressing delay and providing better support for victims are closely related’
The support programme is focused on those pursuing rape and serious sexual offences cases. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has hired 40 new victim liaison officers to be the single point of contact between them and survivors.
The officers will hold pre-trial meetings with survivors in-person or online, and coordinate support for them alongside existing independent sexual violence advisers across the country.
On average adult survivors of rape are waiting 710 days from the point of complaint to proceedings being concluded.
Spending hours sitting with people waiting for their cases to conclude over his 20-year legal career helped Mr Parkinson understand this can be “extremely stressful”.
Many people, he said “just simply cannot get on with their lives while the situation is unresolved”.
The new scheme aims to deliver an “improved” CPS that is more “open and empathetic”. Charlotte Caulton-Scott, the head of the rape and serious sexual offences unit at the organisation, accepts that has not always been the case.
“Our role from its inception is to prosecute offences, but actually over time, through our inspections, through direct feedback from victims, we realised that all our offering in terms of support for victims, hasn’t been good enough.
“I think now, we’ve got this great opportunity to make sure that we’re supporting victims in the best possible way, that we’re communicating empathetically and that we’re making sure that we support victims through what is a long process.
“We haven’t just come up with this idea. We’ve really engaged with victims of sexual abuse to find out what they need.”
Charlotte Caulton-Scott accepts the CPS ‘hasn’t been good enough’ for survivors
When asked if Ms Caulton-Scott accepted criticism that the support has not been good enough for survivors, she told Sky News: “Absolutely. I don’t shy away from that, nor does the CPS. It hasn’t been good enough.
“I’ve had direct feedback in the past saying, this is a faceless organisation. But actually that’s changed considerably.”
Charities supporting survivors welcomed the move in the “right direction” but are sceptical of plans.
Raffy Elliston, a young woman’s independent sexual violence adviser from the charity Solace, told Sky News it is a welcome step but lacks depth.
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‘We’re worried… this step isn’t actually going to put much of a dent in the backlog,’ says Raffy Elliston
Ms Elliston said: “One of things we’re worried about is that there’s such a big backlog and, while, it’s helpful to have meetings with a point of contact – this step isn’t actually going to put much of a dent in the backlog.
“It feels maybe more often plaster over a much bigger wound. It’s good to have clarity over what’s going on, maybe why your case has been adjourned for a year.
“But what they really need is a colossal step to have specialist courts, more judges, more counsel. They need to ban adjournments, last minute adjournments that are so harmful to the people in this process, that’s the step they need to take, not just meetings with points of contact.”
The Criminal Bar Association says the backlog of criminal cases will reach 80,000 by March 2025.
The dates for Donald Trump’s state visit to the UK have been announced, with the US president due to be welcomed by the King from 17 to 19 September.
Buckingham Palace also confirmed that President Trump and first lady Melania will be hosted by the King and Queen at Windsor Castle.
It was expected that the three-day state visit would take place in September after Mr Trump let slip earlier in April that he believed that was when his second “fest” was being planned for.
Windsor was also anticipated to be the location after the US president told reporters in the Oval Office that the letter from the King said Windsor would be the setting. Refurbishment works at Buckingham Palace also meant that Windsor was used last week for French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit.
This will be Mr Trump’s second state visit to the UK, an unprecedented gesture towards an American leader, having previously been invited to Buckingham Palace in 2019.
Donald Trump and Melania Trump posing with Charles and Camilla in 2019. Pic: Reuters
He has also been to Windsor Castle before, in 2018, but despite the considerable military pageantry of the day, and some confusion around inspecting the guard, it was simply for tea with Queen Elizabeth II.
Further details of what will happen during the three-day visit in September will be announced in due course.
On Friday, Sky News revealed it is now unlikely that the US president will address parliament, usually an honour given to visiting heads of state as part of their visit. Some MPs had raised significant concerns about him being given the privilege.
But the House of Commons will not be sitting at the time of Mr Trump’s visit as it will rise for party conference season on the 16 September, meaning the president will not be able to speak in parliament as President Macron did during his state visit this week. However, the House of Lords will be sitting.
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Labour MP: ‘Trump isn’t welcome here’
In February this year, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer presented the US president with the letter from the King inviting him to visit during a meeting at the White House.
After reading it, Mr Trump said it was a “great, great honour”, adding “and that says at Windsor – that’s really something”.
In February, Sir Keir Starmer revealed a letter from the King inviting Donald Trump to the UK. Pic: Reuters
In the letter, the King suggested they might meet at Balmoral or Dumfries House in Scotland first before the much grander state visit. However, it is understood that, although all options were explored, complexities in both the King and Mr Trump’s diaries meant it wasn’t possible.
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This week, it emerged that Police Scotland are planning for a summer visit from the US president, which is likely to see him visit one or both of his golf clubs in Aberdeenshire and Ayrshire, and require substantial policing resources and probably units to be called in from elsewhere in the UK.
Precedent for second-term US presidents, who have already made a state visit, is usually tea or lunch with the monarch at Windsor Castle, as was the case for George W Bush and Barack Obama.
A small plane has crashed at Southend Airport in Essex.
Essex Police said it was at the scene of a “serious incident”.
Images posted online showed huge flames and a large cloud of black smoke, with one witness saying they saw a “fireball”.
A police statement said: “We were alerted shortly before 4pm to reports of a collision involving one 12-metre plane.
“We are working with all emergency services at the scene now and that work will be ongoing for several hours.
“We would please ask the public to avoid this area where possible while this work continues.”
A huge fireball near the airport. Pic: Ben G
It has been reported that the plane involved in the incident is a Beech B200 Super King Air.
According to flight-tracking service Flightradar, it took off at 3.48pm and was bound for Lelystad, a city in the Netherlands.
One man, who was at Southend Airport with his family around the time of the incident, said the aircraft “crashed headfirst into the ground”.
John Johnson said: “About three or four seconds after taking off, it started to bank heavily to its left, and then within a few seconds of that happening, it more or less inverted and crashed.
“There was a big fireball. Obviously, everybody was in shock in terms of witnessing it. All the kids saw it and the families saw it.”
Mr Johnson added that he phoned 999 to report the crash.
Southend Airport said the incident involved “a general aviation aircraft”.
Four flights scheduled to take off from Southend this afternoon were cancelled, according to its website.
Flightradar data shows two planes that had been due to land at Southend were diverted to nearby airports London Gatwick and London Stansted.
Plumes of black smoke. Pic: UKNIP
Essex County Fire and Rescue Service said four crews, along with off-road vehicles, have attended the scene.
Four ambulances and four hazardous area response team vehicles are also at the airport, as well as an air ambulance, the East of England Ambulance Service said.
Its statement described the incident as “still developing”.
Fire engines at the airport
David Burton-Sampson, the MP for Southend West and Leigh, posted on social media: “I am aware of an incident at Southend Airport. Please keep away and allow the emergency services to do their work.
“My thoughts are with everyone involved.”
Local councillor Matt Dent said on X: “At present all I know is that a small plane has crashed at the airport. My thoughts are with all those involved, and with the emergency services currently responding to the incident.”
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UK
Heidi Alexander says ‘fairness’ will be government’s ‘guiding principle’ when it comes to taxes at next budget
Another hint that tax rises are coming in this autumn’s budget has been given by a senior minister.
Speaking to Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips, Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander was asked if Sir Keir Starmer and the rest of the cabinet had discussed hiking taxes in the wake of the government’s failed welfare reforms, which were shot down by their own MPs.
Trevor Phillips asked specifically if tax rises were discussed among the cabinet last week – including on an away day on Friday.
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Tax increases were not discussed “directly”, Ms Alexander said, but ministers were “cognisant” of the challenges facing them.
Asked what this means, Ms Alexander added: “I think your viewers would be surprised if we didn’t recognise that at the budget, the chancellor will need to look at the OBR forecast that is given to her and will make decisions in line with the fiscal rules that she has set out.
“We made a commitment in our manifesto not to be putting up taxes on people on modest incomes, working people. We have stuck to that.”
Ms Alexander said she wouldn’t comment directly on taxes and the budget at this point, adding: “So, the chancellor will set her budget. I’m not going to sit in a TV studio today and speculate on what the contents of that budget might be.
“When it comes to taxation, fairness is going to be our guiding principle.”
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Afterwards, shadow home secretary Chris Philp told Phillips: “That sounds to me like a barely disguised reference to tax rises coming in the autumn.”
He then went on to repeat the Conservative attack lines that Labour are “crashing the economy”.
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Chris Philp also criticsed the government’s migration deal with France
Mr Philp then attacked the prime minister as “weak” for being unable to get his welfare reforms through the Commons.
Discussions about potential tax rises have come to the fore after the government had to gut its welfare reforms.
Sir Keir had wanted to change Personal Independence Payments (PIP), but a large Labour rebellion forced him to axe the changes.
With the savings from these proposed changes – around £5bn – already worked into the government’s sums, they will now need to find the money somewhere else.
The general belief is that this will take the form of tax rises, rather than spending cuts, with more money needed for military spending commitments, as well as other areas of priority for the government, such as the NHS.
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