Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have signed up to her Department's pilot programme to provide free sentencing remarks to victims of rape and sexual offences.

In May 2024, the Ministry of Justice launched a pilot to enable victims of rape and sexual offences, whose cases are heard at the Crown Court, to request a copy of the judge’s sentencing remarks for free. Between May 2024 and 25 April 2025, HM Courts & Tribunals Service received 498 applications under the pilot. The pilot is due to conclude at the end of May 2025.

We recognise the value that transcripts can have for victims of crime. Victims of rape and sexual offences were chosen for the pilot due to the particular difficulties they face when attending court. We are actively exploring opportunities to use technology to reduce the cost of transcripts of hearings in the criminal courts in future, but maintaining a high degree of accuracy will always be of paramount importance.

We are currently assessing the pilot’s uptake and impact and will be able to say more on our plans for future provision in due course.