Meeting of the Parliament 01 May 2018
I thank Kezia Dugdale for bringing forward today’s debate on a very important subject. I want to take this opportunity to note the work of the rape crisis centres that work with people in my region, although the centres are not located in my region specifically. I have heard the amazing work that they are doing to support rape victims in the west of Scotland.
Among others, the Glasgow and Clyde rape crisis centre, which does outreach work in East Dunbartonshire and West Dunbartonshire, the Argyll and Bute rape crisis centre, which is based in Dunoon, and the Star Centre, which is located in Kilmarnock, are doing amazing work in the west of Scotland. I am sure that they have the gratitude of everyone in the chamber for their work.
The question of compelling reluctant complainers in rape cases to give evidence in courts is a very difficult topic, and I have had to spend a lot of time thinking about it in the run-up to this evening’s debate. I think that we can all agree that the area is one in which we need to strike the right balance. We have come up against the difficult task of attempting to juggle the needs of rape victims and their welfare; the needs of prosecutors, who do their best to protect the public from serious sexual offenders; and the needs of the courts to have enough information and evidence to find someone guilty beyond reasonable doubt.
The balance that the Government and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service have sought needs to ensure that rape victims are not put off from coming forward, and that they feel supported. The reason for doing that is obvious: the latest official statistics show that just 39 per cent of those taken to court were found guilty, which is down from 49 per cent in the previous year and the lowest conviction rate since 2008-09, when it was 37 per cent. That drop came despite the number of in-court proceedings last year rising by 13 per cent.
We all know that this is a massive issue that we need to address, but I fear that going about it by compelling witnesses to appear and give evidence against their wishes will not help the overall situation but make it worse, because it will reduce the number of women coming forward to the police in the first place to tell them that they have been raped. In an interview with the BBC, Sandy Brindley of Rape Crisis Scotland said:
“One of the key reassurances that we are currently able to give people is that if they don’t feel able to proceed, that their wishes will be respected, but this will be gone.”
I am concerned that the unintended consequence of the policy will be that women will not seek help from the police or charities because they will be concerned about being forced to give evidence in court. I know that that will concern the Government as well. Kezia Dugdale’s motion speaks admirably of the need to reconsider the current policy, which I think would be the most appropriate course of action. When we have charities such as Rape Crisis Scotland telling the Government that the Crown Office is going about something in the wrong way, it is important that the Government listens to that advice.
We need to create an environment in which it is easier for women to come forward and tell their own story in court. By supporting them in that process before, during and after the hearings, we can ensure that the conviction rate goes up, proper justice is delivered and victims receive the care and support that they deserve.
17:51