Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an assessment of the adequacy of the support that is available to jurors who have been adversely affected by sitting on a jury.
Answered by Mike Freer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
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 this important role.
If any aspect of jury service has left a juror feeling distressed, they are encouraged to speak to their GP and/or the Samaritans. Their GP can help them to access counselling services and the Samaritans can provide support over the telephone, email or through a local Samaritan branch. A leaflet entitled ‘Supporting You Through Jury Service’ which offers further advice to jurors is available in courts.
Our courts request regular feedback from jurors through Juror Experience Surveys to better understand jurors’ needs which finds most jurors enjoy completing jury service. We are using this research alongside the extensive academic research available and experience from other jurisdictions to inform our approach. We are aware that a small minority of jurors suffer adverse effects and are working to understand their specific needs to ensure that the support we offer is appropriate.
Asked by: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat - Somerton and Frome)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) witnesses and (b) complainants in domestic violence cases involving (i) lengthy court proceedings and (ii) pressure from the defendant to change or withdraw their statement.
Answered by Laura Farris - Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Ministry of Justice) (jointly with Home Office)
The Government recognises the vital role that support services play in helping victims of domestic abuse during their engagement with the criminal justice system. This is why we are using additional ringfenced funding to increase the number of Independent Sexual Violence Advisors (ISVAs) and Independent Domestic Violence Advisors (IDVAs) to over 1000 by 2024/2025 – a 43% increase on the number of advisors over this spending review period.
The magistrates’ court hears over 90% of criminal cases and we continue to hear over 100,000 cases every month. Cases continue to move swiftly through the magistrates’ court with cases heard taking 31 days on average from charge to case completion.
However, we recognise that some court proceedings may be lengthy, and that this can be difficult for victims and witnesses. The Witness Service is available to witnesses in all criminal courts in England and Wales and this service provides practical and emotional support to witnesses of crimes throughout court proceedings.
The intimidation of a witness with the intention of obstructing, perverting or interfering with the course of justice is a criminal offence. Police and prosecutors are also encouraged to develop robust evidence-led case strategies from the start, so that where victims are absent because they are unable or do not want to support a prosecution, the case can still proceed.