Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department plans to take steps to reform the use of Release Under Investigation.

The Government is aware of the issues around the process of Released Under Investigation (RUI) and the impact this can have on both suspects and victims. Following a public consultation on pre-charge bail, ending in May 2020, the Government is now seeking to introduce significant reforms through the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill.

While RUI is not a process set out in legislation, the reforms in the Bill will help limit its usage by creating a pre-charge bail system that works better for the police, victims and suspects. This includes the removal of the perceived presumption against pre-charge bail and the creation of a new duty to seek the views of alleged victims before releasing suspects on pre-charge bail, where it is necessary and proportionate to do so.

Alongside this change, the Government has established a new power for the College of Policing in the Bill to issue national statutory guidance on pre-charge bail which will help address the use of Released Under Investigation. We will also be monitoring forces closely with an enhanced data collection on use pre-charge bail and RUI in the future.