Justice Secretary Dominic Raab has revealed 60% of victims do not report crimes to police and a third drop out during the prosecution process, ahead of the publication of scorecards rating local police services.
“It’s appalling that three in five victims don’t report crimes and a third pull out of prosecutions before they see justice done,” Mr Raab said.
Writing for the Daily Telegraph, Mr Raab also referenced Emily Hunt – a sexual assault survivor who is now an independent adviser to the Government on victims.
“She was made to feel like she was under investigation,” he said.
“No victim should be made to feel that way. Too many victims are being let down by the system. I’m determined to put that right – and have asked Emily to advise us, so we can do much better.”
Earlier, the Ministry of Justice promised to spend more than £440 million on victim support services over the next three years.
And measures have also been announced to help spare victims of rape and modern slavery the trauma of giving evidence in the full glare of a courtroom will be rolled out in the North East.
Known as Section 28s applications, these allow victims to have their cross-examination recorded earlier in the process and outside of the live trial, subject to the court approving the request.
