§ 18. Mr. WattsIf he will make a statement on the treatment of victims by the criminal justice system. [11674]
§ Mr. MichaelThe Government are firmly committed to helping victims of crime and to taking action to redress the balance of the criminal justice system in the favour of victims. We have already taken several steps to achieve that. We are giving Victim Support an extra £1 million a year to develop its work with victims and witnesses and to establish a national telephone helpline for victims. We have established an interdepartmental group to undertake an urgent, wide-ranging review of ways to assist vulnerable or intimidated witnesses. There are several other proposals, including sentencing proposals.
§ Mr. WattsCan my hon. Friend give the House an update on any progress that has been made in speeding up the process of dealing with cases that involve young persistent criminals?
§ Mr. MichaelThe steps that the Government are taking are intended to halve the time that it takes for persistent offenders to come before the courts. As the Audit Commission showed last year, it currently takes, on average, a ludicrous four-and-a-half months to get young offenders before the court. [Interruption.] I take it that that was applause for our intention to cut that time. We intend to halve that time, so that persistent young offenders are dealt with quickly by the courts.