Oral Answers to Questions

Sarah Dyke Excerpts

Tuesday 14th May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Alex Chalk]

The hon. Gentleman raises an excellent point, and he is right. The reoffending rate is worth focusing on: in 2010 it was around 31%, and now it is 25%. The reason for that is a combination of focusing on accommodation, as we have just discussed, and employment so that people have a stake in society, as well as tackling substance abuse. We are looking at technology with great focus, to ensure that people can be treated for their substance addition on the inside by the very clinicians who will treat them on the outside. That continuity is vital to get them off drugs and rehabilitate them.

[Sarah Dyke (Somerton and Frome) (LD)]

14. If he will make an assessment of the adequacy of support available to jurors who have been adversely affected by sitting on a jury.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Gareth Bacon)]

Juries are a vital part of our criminal justice system, and jury service is an important civic duty. We want to do everything we can to help jurors feel supported as they undertake that important role, which is why the Government have announced our intention to test counselling sessions for jurors who suffer mental and emotional strain following a trial. That pilot will commence in 15 courts this summer.

[Sarah Dyke]

Currently, jurors dealing with extremely violent crimes, witnessing ever-increasingly sophisticated and graphic material, often feel that they do not have sufficient aftercare to deal with their experiences. They are advised to seek counselling only with their GP or the Samaritans. What discussions has the Minister had on increasing the amount of post-trial support for jurors when they have faced potentially traumatic levels of stress as a result of their experience?

--- Later in debate ---

[Alex Chalk]

I am grateful to my right hon. Friend for raising this. Court orders must be obeyed, and a person can apply to the court for them to be removed. That will need to take place in the normal course of events.

On the Lucy Letby case, I simply make the point that juries’ verdicts must be respected. If there are grounds for an appeal, that should take place in the normal way.

[Sarah Dyke (Somerton and Frome) (LD)]

T8. Taunton Deane magistrates court had 1,027 outstanding criminal cases in the first quarter of 2023, and the Justice Secretary’s own constituency, as of the end of December, had 1,954. These delays are letting down victims, their families, witnesses and defendants, while undermining public confidence in the criminal justice system. How does he plan to tackle this backlog? Will he provide those working tirelessly in our courts with adequate support and resources to carry out their duties?

[Alex Chalk]

We have increased capacity in the system. We have opened 20 Nightingale courts, including Cirencester Crown court in my county of Gloucestershire. We have increased the number of judges by 1,000. We have put up to £141 million into legal aid. We have raised the retirement age. And we are ensuring there is support for victims, including through independent sexual violence advisers and independent domestic violence advisers, and by introducing a rape support helpline, and so on. We are doing everything we can to support victims, to increase capacity in the system and to heal the damage caused by covid.

Victims and Prisoners Bill

Sarah Dyke Excerpts

Report stage
Monday 4th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Jim Shannon]

First, I commend the hon. Member for Bromley and Chislehurst (Sir Robert Neill) on his amendment. If he decides to push it to a vote, I will certainly support him, because it is important that we have a justice system to be proud of.

In Northern Ireland, we have an indeterminate custodial sentence, although it is slightly different. I am a strong believer in just punishment, and that is no secret. I have an issue with people being let back into society when, to some extent, they still pose some risk. The Minister has given us some assurance, which I am glad to get, but there is a clear difference between a petty crime and a sexual predator who may have served time, but is still potentially a risk to the general public.

I am aware that there were nine self-inflicted deaths of people with sentences of imprisonment for public protection in 2022, and a freedom of information request this year has indicated that this year there have been a further seven. We look to the MOJ for a new action plan that works. Our main objective and focus is that victims are not let down, and that criminals are not let out into the public domain should they pose any type of harm or risk to people. I look forward to hearing further from the Minister, and I sincerely hope that this conversation can be extended to the Department of Justice in Northern Ireland, too.

I also want to speak to new clause 27. I commend the right hon. Member for Kingston upon Hull North (Dame Diana Johnson) on her dedicated and committed plan, which we are supporting. I hope tonight that we can agree that measure. What bugs me, and probably the right hon. Lady, too, is that the Government are rightly making payments to the victims of the Post Office Horizon scandal before the final report of that public inquiry is published. An independent inquiry into the infected blood scandal was due to publish its final report this autumn, but that document will now be published in March 2024. I am incredulous that we are letting this go any further. If the Government are committed to helping those affected by the Post Office Horizon scandal, they should do the same for those affected by the contaminated blood scandal. That is what the right hon. Lady is asking for, and it is what I want, too. To leave such decisions until March 2024 is disgraceful.

One fact that always seems to be prominent is the number of people who have sadly passed away. I asked a question about that last week. One person affected by this scandal dies every four days, and I am greatly concerned that we will not have answers on that. Has the Minister had an opportunity to speak to the Department of Health back home on ensuring that victims from Northern Ireland can access compensation in the absence of an Assembly? In my estimation, 100 victims in Northern Ireland have had no word whatsoever. They are waiting in this never-never land where they cannot get any help at all. The main priority is urgency. How much longer can we expect victims and their families to wait? The second stage of the inquiry states that the scheme should be set up now and begin work this year. Who are we in this House to delay it any longer? I commend the right hon. Lady, and I hope we push this amendment tonight and win it.

[Sarah Dyke (Somerton and Frome) (LD)]

I am sad to say that I have had several constituents approach me about the conduct of individual police officers on cases of violence against women and girls. That includes grossly inappropriate language, such as saying that one perpetrator of rape had a “reasonable expectation of consent” after drugging and assaulting my constituent to a point of significant bloodshed. I will not be more specific on individual cases, but I do not believe my constituents’ experiences are unique to Somerset.

Operation Soteria Bluestone was pioneered in Avon and Somerset police, and features groundbreaking collaboration between criminologists and police officers, and I was pleased to meet members of the team on Friday to discuss their work. I spoke in this place after the King’s Speech calling for Operation Soteria Bluestone to be properly funded and extended to all police forces, with a particular focus on educating officers.

Simple numbers in uniforms is not enough without thorough vetting and training, ensuring that all officers responding to victims and handling investigations do not perpetuate rape myths, accentuate victim trauma and mishandle evidence. My constituents must have the confidence that police and judicial officers have received thorough and appropriate training, and that they will be treated with due respect and regard by our justice apparatus in the most traumatic moments of their life. I therefore urge the Government to back new clause 29, tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Edinburgh West (Christine Jardine), and to support Liberal Democrat policies to improve community trust in police, to create the pipeline of trust by educating police officers, and to fund more community police officers by cutting police and crime commissioners.

Before I close, I would like to talk briefly about new clause 10, which was tabled by my hon. Friend the Member for Westmorland and Lonsdale (Tim Farron). I was concerned, but not shocked, to see in the Environment Agency report a large rise in the number of bathing water sites rated as poor quality. It shows the real impact that the Government’s neglect of poor behaviour by water firms has had on our health and wellbeing. Our precious rivers and waters bring a multitude of health benefits, as I see in my own constituency, where the wild swimming site in Farleigh Hungerford attracts many swimmers, and Vobster Quay, an inland diving and swimming centre, also brings the same benefits. I know that my constituents will be devastated to lose such an important cultural asset. I therefore support this vital new clause, which will help hold negligent water firms to account and provide compensation to those who have suffered illness as a direct result of criminal conduct in relation to sewage, and I urge the Government to do the same.

[Mr Deputy Speaker (Sir Roger Gale)]

With the leave of the House, I call the Minister to wind up the debate.

Violence Reduction, Policing and Criminal Justice

Sarah Dyke Excerpts

Wednesday 15th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Sarah Dyke (Somerton and Frome) (LD)]

My constituents know that I stand in solidarity with those affected by the atrocities in the middle east. As Liberal Democrats, we call for an immediate ceasefire and a two-state solution, and a path to peace in the long term.

It is a privilege to speak in a debate on the King’s Speech—the King’s first Speech. May I begin by passing my condolences to the family of Lord Cotter? Brian Cotter was a Somerset man, and a tireless advocate for both small businesses and mental health.

The Home Secretary may have changed, but it is still “same old” with this Government. Charge rates are the lowest they have been for years, especially those for burglary. One of my constituents had £55,000-worth of equipment stolen in September, and has still not met an officer. While I welcome the success of Operation Soteria Bluestone, pioneered by the Avon and Somerset force, it is not enough for the Government to rest on the laurels of the academics and the officers who created it. We need to create a pipeline of trust by committing ourselves to educating all boys and men about violent crimes against women and girls. We also need more officers from diverse backgrounds, and a policing culture that welcomes and values them. Simple numbers in uniforms are simply not enough without thorough vetting and training. We need trusted, visible and local community police officers who are much more effective in their communities than police and crime commissioners. The Liberal Democrats have already committed themselves to all those changes.

Delay is the mantra of this Government, and nowhere do we feel that more than in Somerset. We are missing out on 18,000 new homes because they are in the levels and moors catchment area—a designated site of special scientific interest endangered by the high levels of phosphates in our water systems. I have 600 constituents on the waiting list for affordable housing. In Frome the average rent is nearly £1,500 a month, making up 50% of the average salary. One family of six are currently living in a two-bedroom apartment.

At this point, I must declare an interest as a proudly active Somerset councillor. Without new houses, the council cannot enforce section 106 agreements that make developers provide funds for the benefit of local communities, or claim the community infrastructure levy. A recent no-cost trial in the west country, led by Somerset Council, showed that modular water treatment units removed more than 98% of phosphates and 88% of nitrates. I want to see the Somerset partnership’s bid to the nutrient mitigation fund granted, and adopted across those affected areas. We do not need to be stuck in an archaic binary of either not building anything or scrapping environmental safeguards. The Liberal Democrats will use a new blue flag standard to protect our water, including wild swimming areas such as the site in Farleigh Hungerford in my constituency. We will also build 150,000 new social homes a year. Those aims do not need to be mutually exclusive.

As a farmer, I could see that the only potential Brexit benefit was common agricultural policy reform, but the Government have botched that, leaving many farmers on the brink. Farmers need the security of clearly communicated long-term planning, not being left in the dark over de-linked payments and betrayed on pompous flag-waving trade deals. In the meantime, Somerset high streets are emptying fast. Local shops, banks, post offices, pharmacies, GP surgeries and NHS dentists are all being priced out by the Tory business rates, forcing residents to travel further to access their needs. We will reform high street business rates and work hard to ensure that nobody is out of reach of banking services and affordable food. The Liberal Democrats listen, plan and act. Please, let’s move forward. Let’s call a general election now.