Issue 223  11th December 2021

'In-person hearings likely to continue in Plan B'

Face-to-face hearings are likely to continue despite the government’s ‘Plan B’ to tackle rising coronavirus cases, with decisions on remote attendance left to the discretion of judges. Boris Johnson said last night that people should work from home where possible from Monday as part of a new suite of restrictions to deal with the rise in cases of the Omicron variant. HM Courts & Tribunals Service guidance for courts and tribunal users was updated this morning to reflect the prime minister’s announcement, but does not appear to include any substantive change...

A spokesperson for the judiciary also said there was not likely to be any change in the operation of the courts, pointing out that lawyers and court staff considered essential to the running of the justice system had been classed as key workers at the height of the pandemic...

'Evaluation of remote hearings during the COVID-19 pandemic published'

Today we published an evaluation of remote hearings during the COVID-19 pandemic research report. This reports the experience of public users, the judiciary, legal representatives, HMCTS staff, and support professionals and their attitudes towards remote hearings.

Key findings include:

• public users attending remotely were slightly more likely to be satisfied with the overall experience of their hearing than in-person users (benefits included greater convenience, reduced costs and removing the anxiety of being in a room with another participant, who they may be in conflict with)
• legal representatives were positive about remote hearings, with 93% saying they felt remote hearings were an acceptable alternative during the pandemic (views were mixed about how they should be used in the future)
• 51% of judges thought remote hearings were effective at creating an environment comparable to in-person hearings, but raised concerns about their impact on well-being and increased workload

'Landmark reforms for victims'

Under plans set out in a consultation published today, victims’ views would be taken into better account at regular points during their case. Proposals include an explicit requirement for prosecutors to meet the victims of certain crimes before making a charging decision in order to understand the impact. It also outlines plans for community impact statements, which would provide an account for the collective impact of an offence, including in cases where there is no clear victim – such as attacks on public places or anti-social behaviour...

Plans to increase the Victim Surcharge have also been set out in the consultation today, to ensure that criminals contribute more towards crucial victim services. This penalty fee – which offenders are made to pay when they are sentenced for crimes - goes straight back into funding support services for victims and currently can be as low as £22 for a conditional discharge. Under the plans set out today, the minimum rate could be increased to £100, over and above the existing pledge to increase it by 20%...

As part of this push, it was also confirmed today that victims of sexual and modern slavery offences offences will be spared the trauma of giving evidence in court, subject to a successful application, through the national roll out of a scheme enabling pre-recorded evidence across all crown courts in England and Wales – far faster and further than initially pledged in the Rape Review. Known as section 28, the scheme allows victims to have their cross-examination pre-recorded earlier in the process and outside the courtroom, and can help to reduce stress to ensure they give their best evidence. The measure is already in place for vulnerable witnesses such as children and is currently being piloted for victims of sexual and modern slavery offences in seven crown courts. The government will now work in close partnership with the judiciary, police and Crown Prosecution Service to develop a plan which will see it available across the country as soon as possible...

'County lines: Government pledges to dismantle 2,000 gangs in drug policy overhaul'

The government says it is to provide rehabilitation for 300,000 drug users who carry out half of all shop thefts, robberies and burglaries. Ministers have announced that a 10-year drugs strategy will allocate £780m in funding for the drug treatment system in England. It also includes £300m for combating more than 2,000 county lines gangs. The government says that in some cases casual drug users may lose their driving licences or passports...

It plans to roll out individual employment support across all local authorities in England by 2025 to help those in recovery to secure work. It will also aim to increase the number of referrals for treatment from within the criminal justice system and improve the engagement of prisoners with treatment after their release. Judges will also be given the power to order testing on anyone serving a community sentence for drug-related offences and those who test positive could be jailed...

The policy paper can be found here.

'New prison strategy to rehabilitate offenders and cut crime'

• New technology to thwart smuggling and bolstered plans to tackle addictions to keep offenders clean
• Rigorous new literacy and numeracy standards and job-matching service to find employment
• ‘Resettlement Passports’ to ensure prisoners have the basics to stay crime-free upon release

The Prisons Strategy White Paper, published today (7 December 2021), sets out a new plan to deliver the biggest prison-building programme in more than 100 years – creating the right conditions to reform and rehabilitate offenders and ultimately cut crime, keeping streets safe...

'Reforms to protect disabled and LGBT+ victims, criminalise extremist misogynist “incel” hate material, and safeguard free speech'

The Law Commission has today [7 December 2021] announced recommendations to reform hate crime legislation to ensure that disabled and LGBT+ victims receive the same protections as victims with other protected characteristics (race and religion). If enacted, the reforms would ensure all five characteristics are protected equally by the law.

The Commission is also making a number of recommendations to protect women and girls. This includes extending the offence of stirring up hatred (behaviour that incites others to hate entire groups) to cover sex or gender and has recommended that the government consider the need for a new offence to tackle public sexual harassment.

Whilst enhancing protection for victims of targeted abuse, the Commission has also made a number of recommendations to safeguard freedom of expression and ensure the criminal law is focussed on the most egregious hate speech.

'Julian Assange can be extradited to the US, court rules'

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange can be extradited from the UK to the US, the High Court has ruled. The US won its appeal against a January UK court ruling that he could not be extradited due to concerns over his mental health. Judges were reassured by US promises to reduce the risk of suicide. His fiancee said they intended to appeal.

Mr Assange is wanted in the US over the publication of thousands of classified documents in 2010 and 2011. Senior judges found the lower judge had based her decision in January on the risk of Mr Assange being held in highly restrictive prison conditions if extradited. However, the US authorities later gave assurances that he would not face those strictest measures unless he committed an act in the future that merited them.