Labour to give police emergency powers to charge domestic abuse suspects
Labour to give police emergency powers to charge domestic abuse suspects The Guardian
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Six Police Forces to Receive Powers to Charge Domestic Abusers Without CPS Involvement
Six police forces will be given powers to charge domestic abuser suspects without the involvement of the Crown Prosecution Service as part of a series of Labour proposals to solve more crimes announced on Thursday.
A future Keir Starmer government would also give victims in domestic abuse, rape, and sexual assault cases the right to have specialist support advisers throughout the criminal justice process and beside them in court.
Proposed Reforms
- A plan to drop the requirement of police to redact case files before they are sent to the CPS, which Labour says will save thousands of officer hours.
- A statutory duty on chief constables and chief crown prosecutors to work together to deliver justice for victims, including a requirement to develop new joint justice arrangements in every area and devise an annual joint charging action plan.
- Annual joint inspections to ensure the CPS and police improve communication, reduce delays, bolster case file quality, and drive up the charge rate.
Leaning into Starmer’s credentials as former director for public prosecutions, Labour has set out the proposals as a result of a report from the charging commission, a panel of former senior police chiefs and prosecutors assembled by the party to examine how to improve charging rates.
Home Office figures show that in the year to March 2023, there were “evidential difficulties” with 2,435,273 out of 5,480,135 recorded crimes.
Some 9.2% of crimes resulted in a charge or out-of-court action, along with a further 0.6% being dealt with through diversionary activity, according to the data.
Concerns and Solutions
Thornberry told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme on Friday: “The proportion of crimes charged has gone down by two thirds since 2015, which is pretty terrible. And at the same time, the amount of time that it is taking once the CPS had been given the information for them to charge has gone up by three.”
She added: “We ought to be thinking about the victims who are just being let down by this dysfunctionality.”
Chaired by the former victims’ commissioner Dame Vera Baird, the commission concluded that there had been a breakdown in confidence and communication between the police and CPS with officers and prosecutors often refusing to speak to one another.
Labour plans to extend the use of emergency provisions for the police to charge high-risk domestic abuser suspects where the CPS cannot charge in time after a recommendation by the commission.
The plan, based on a pilot implemented by West Yorkshire Police which has invested in a cohort of trained police decision-makers, will be rolled out to six unnamed forces with high levels of “file quality compliance” at first, the party said.
The commission said the police and CPS must “end the blame game”, and called for a new legal duty on chief constables and chief crown prosecutors in England and Wales to reduce delays and friction between the two agencies while cases are being investigated and charging decisions considered.
Some officers said they did not even have contact details for the prosecutors working on their cases, meaning they could communicate only through a “ping pong” of electronic memos, contributing to disastrous delays.
One lawyer who had been working for the CPS for more than three years said they had never spoken to a police officer. Many of those who contributed to the commission were nostalgic for the days when police and prosecutors worked alongside each other in the same building and could talk through difficult cases face-to-face.
Conclusion
Baird said: “These new proposals will bring a boost to charging by bringing CPS, police, and victims’ organisations closer together with shared duties, through cross-agency collaboration and in a joint effort to remove inter-agency friction and focus wholly on the public interest.”
SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Relevant to the Article
1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?
- SDG 5: Gender Equality
- SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions
The article discusses Labour’s proposals to address domestic abuse, rape, and sexual assault cases, which are issues related to gender equality and the need for strong institutions to ensure justice for victims.
2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?
- SDG 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation.
- SDG 16.3: Promote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all.
The article highlights Labour’s proposals to improve the efficiency of the charging process and provide support for victims in domestic abuse, rape, and sexual assault cases. These proposals align with the targets of eliminating violence against women and girls and promoting equal access to justice.
3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?
- Proportion of crimes charged
- Time taken for the CPS to charge after receiving information
- Breakdown in confidence and communication between police and CPS
The article mentions that the proportion of crimes charged has decreased since 2015, indicating a potential indicator for measuring progress towards SDG 16.3. The increase in the time taken for the CPS to charge after receiving information also suggests a possible indicator. Additionally, the breakdown in confidence and communication between police and CPS can be considered an indicator of the need for improved collaboration and efficiency in the justice system.
Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators
| SDGs | Targets | Indicators |
|---|---|---|
| SDG 5: Gender Equality | 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres, including trafficking and sexual and other types of exploitation. | – Proportion of crimes charged – Time taken for the CPS to charge after receiving information |
| SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions | 16.3: Promote the rule of law at the national and international levels and ensure equal access to justice for all. | – Proportion of crimes charged – Time taken for the CPS to charge after receiving information – Breakdown in confidence and communication between police and CPS |
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Source: theguardian.com
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