Members' Business: Support for Rape Crisis Centres and Prosecutions - 1 May 2018
Channel: The Scottish Parliament
Date: 01/05/2018

Kezia Dugdale: Support for Rape Crisis Centres and Prosecutions—That the
Parliament welcomes what it sees as the Scottish Government’s broad commitment to addressing
violence against women and girls, which it set out in the strategy, Equally Safe; recognises the
specific work that it has carried out to date to improve the justice system for victim-survivors of 
gender-based violence and the emphasis on ensuring that survivors of sexual violence are
responded to sensitively and appropriately by the justice agencies; notes the recent change of 
policy by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) on compelling reluctant 
complainers in rape cases to give evidence and what it sees as the significant opposition that this
has attracted from charities that work directly with survivors; recognises the concerns of people 
who state that this change in policy could jeopardise both the wellbeing of survivors and their 
access to justice; notes the calls for the Lord Advocate to reconsider this policy and to engage with
Rape Crisis Scotland to ensure that COPFS’s approach is informed by the needs and experiences
of rape complainers, and further notes the calls for Police Scotland, COPFS and the Scottish 
Courts and Tribunal Service to work with the Scottish Government and stakeholders to redouble
their efforts in addressing the reasons that complainers feel unable to continue with the justice 
process and for the Scottish Government to ensure that all rape crisis centres in Lothian and
across Scotland receive adequate and sustainable funding to facilitate survivor engagement with
the criminal justice system and meet their support needs.

Published by the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body.

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