Ellie Reeves MP: speeches

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Speeches

9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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This week, I announced the national roll-out of the early victims’ right to review scheme. From Monday, if the Crown Prosecution Service is considering dropping a case, rape and serious sexual assault survivors across England and Wales will have the right for that view to be reviewed by a second independent prosecutor before a final decision is taken. I have sat with advocates and survivors who fight every day, and are determined for the system to change. This week, we have changed it.
9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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Tackling violence against women and girls is my No. 1 priority as Solicitor General. I oversee the unduly lenient sentence scheme, and where a sentence is clearly unduly lenient, I can refer the case to the Court of Appeal for review. Members of the public, and victims and their family members, can all refer cases to the scheme. It is an important way of ensuring transparency in our system, and that there is an ability to challenge, where things go wrong.
9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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I thank my hon. Friend for that question, and for everything that she has done on this important issue. The Government’s landmark strategy to halve violence against women and girls starts with prevention, by focusing on the root causes and designing interventions to tackle outdated societal attitudes. We are investing a record £20 million in education to address harmful attitudes and behaviours head-on, so that young people are taught to identify positive role models, and to challenge unhealthy myths about women and relationships. In trials by jury, the judge gives directions that each juror must evaluate the evidence before them dispassionately, putting aside any bias towards the victim.
9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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I commend the bravery and courage of my hon. Friend’s constituent in coming forward, and I am very sorry to hear about the additional trauma that they have faced waiting for justice to be served. As well as tackling the backlog to reduce delays, this Government are committed to supporting victims. In April, I announced an additional £5 million of Treasury funding to offer domestic abuse victims in Crown court cases a pre-trial meeting with the prosecution team. These crucial meetings will support victims in the lead-up to their trial. A similar service is already offered to victims of rape and serious sexual assault, and I am pleased that we are now able to pilot that for victims of domestic abuse in three CPS areas.
9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend makes an incredibly important and powerful point, and I commend her on all her work to tackle violence against women and girls, and on the courage that she has shown. The presumption of contact changes are incredibly important, and will progress in the usual way, as the Bill goes through Parliament.
9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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I start by paying tribute to the tireless campaigning of Jade Blue. Jade was a victim of rape, but the CPS wrongly dropped her case just 13 days before trial. Ever since, she has campaigned for change. The early victims’ right to review gives rape victims the chance for their case to be reviewed before the CPS makes a final decision. If that had been in place for Jade Blue, her case would have continued, and in the pilot, cases that would previously have been stopped have carried on. I am determined that we will put victims at the heart of our justice system. Because of that, we are rolling out this scheme nationwide.
9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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I commend Voices in Bath and its important support for women. The CPS has introduced an enhanced service for victims of rape and serious sexual abuse. Victims now have a dedicated victim liaison officer, who they can contact throughout their case, and they are offered a pre-trial meeting with the prosecution. Following the success of that scheme, it is being trialled for victims of domestic abuse, and I have secured £5 million of funding to pilot a scheme in which victims of domestic abuse whose cases are in the Crown court are also offered that pre-trial meeting. We are leaving no stone unturned when it comes to supporting victims.
9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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I thank the hon. Gentleman for championing the role of independent domestic abuse advisers. They do incredibly important work. I will ensure that his question and comments about the specifics of the family courts are passed to a Minister in the Ministry of Justice, so that he receives a full response.
9 Jul 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls: Prosecution Rates · Hansard source
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The hon. Gentleman makes a really important point: some research has shown a correlation between someone abusing their pet and domestic abuse. That is touched on in the cross-Government VAWG strategy. It is important that vets are aware of that research and that link, and can detect those issues and signpost and escalate when necessary.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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Leveson in his report stated that investment alone was not enough and that the system needs reforming as well. We have made a record £2.7 billion investment in the courts, which provides for unlimited sitting days, an increase in defence fees, and includes half a billion pounds for victims services. That is fixing the mess that we inherited.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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Jury trials remain a cornerstone of our justice system, and will always be in place for the most serious crimes. The Government must guarantee everyone a fair trial. Timeliness is essential for fairness, and the fairness of the system is being undermined by the record backlogs in the Crown court, which we inherited from the previous Conservative Government.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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Jury trials will always remain in place for the most serious cases. My hon. Friend raises a point about the early victims’ right to review scheme, which will be rolled out nationwide on Monday. He is right that the west midlands led the way with the first pilot of the scheme. Under the scheme, victims of rape and serious sexual offences will have the opportunity for their case to be reviewed by a second independent prosecutor before any decision is taken to stop the case before trial. That gives victims a second chance of justice and a greater say in their case. I am pleased that the west midlands led the way on that.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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The hon. Member will know that a national listing framework is being introduced to tackle some of the issues that he describes. He will also know that it was a manifesto commitment to introduce specialist rape courts. The Ministry of Justice is determined to do that, so that victims of rape and serious sexual violence are not waiting years for their cases to get to court.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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We have considered all of Sir Brian’s recommendations. I have met him to discuss those relating to the work of the CPS, and I continue to meet the CPS regularly to discuss what more it can do to support the criminal justice system. For example, just this week I announced the early victims’ right to review, which will be rolled out nationwide. We are also extending more support to victims of domestic abuse, offering them a pre-trial meeting with the prosecution. It is important that we do everything we can, not only to speed up cases but to make sure that victims have confidence in the justice system.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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My hon. Friend is a great champion for his constituents, and for all those affected by this issue. I share his concerns about accountability. Although the matter does not sit with the Attorney General’s office, I will ensure that his question is passed on to the relevant Minister and he receives a response.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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I am astonished that the hon. Gentleman says that the measures we are introducing are for no good reason. We inherited a courts system in crisis, with a backlog of 80,000 cases and victims waiting years for their cases to get to court. Doing nothing was not an option, which is why we have invested record amounts in our courts and why Justice Ministers are looking at reforming the system.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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As I have set out at this Dispatch Box over recent months, Sir Brian Leveson said in his report that investment alone was not enough, and that reform was also necessary to bring down the backlog of 80,000 cases that we inherited from the previous Conservative Government. Inaction just was not an option. The Ministry of Justice has had to take difficult choices. I remind the hon. Lady that, unlike the previous Conservative Government, we have invested in our courts, introduced unlimited sitting days and invested in victim services. We are doing everything we can to get the backlog down, so that victims can have their cases heard without having to wait years and years for justice.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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We have put record investment into the courts, with measures such as unlimited sitting days. The Crown Prosecution Service has increased the number of Crown advocates on the Crown advocate panel and increased support offered to victims. Leveson was clear that investment alone would not fix the problems that we inherited and the 80,000 case backlog. The proposal suggests that it will speed up cases by 20%, and that has been backed by the Institute for Government.
9 Jul 2026 · Jury Trials · Hansard source
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The hon. Lady will know that I am not the spokesperson for my right hon. Friend the Member for Makerfield, but I am sure that, like all of us in the House, he is concerned about the unprecedented court backlogs that this Government inherited, and that he will engage with Ministry of Justice Ministers as the Courts and Tribunals Bill progresses through Parliament. Victims are waiting years for a date in court. That is why the Government have invested record amounts in the court system and will continue working to bring down the backlog.
4 Jun 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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I first pay tribute to former Ministers Jess Phillips and Alex Davies-Jones for all their work to tackle violence against women and girls. At the CPS Crown advocacy conference last month, I highlighted the steps being taken to increase the volume of advocates available to prosecute rape. Since the summer of 2024, that group has grown by more than 50%, meaning that more rape cases can be heard and fewer will be vacated or abandoned. The Government have also set aside £6 million over the next two years to introduce independent legal advisers for victims of adult rape to help ensure that cases make it to prosecution.
4 Jun 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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I thank my hon. Friend for her really important question. There have been three successful prosecutions for FGM in this country, but that is not good enough. Last month I hosted the first ever FGM summit, bringing together colleagues across Government to discuss how we can tackle FGM by working not just with the justice system, but with health, education, communities and local government. It is really important that we tackle FGM. It is a form of violence against women and girls, and it must be stopped.
4 Jun 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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The CPS has introduced an enhanced service for victims of rape and serious sexual violence. All victims of rape and serious sexual violence are now offered a meeting with the prosecution team before the case gets to trial and are allocated a dedicated victim liaison officer in the CPS to support them through the process. As I said, we are also introducing independent legal advisers. I have secured £5 million of funding to pilot that enhanced service, providing a prosecution team meeting and victim liaison officers to victims of domestic abuse in the Crown courts. I assure the hon. Gentleman that we are doing everything at our disposal to tackle violence against women and girls from within the CPS.
4 Jun 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question, and I commend the work of Kaleidoscopic UK in his constituency—I know how hard many organisations are working to tackle these issues. The Government are committed to rolling out child-focused courts nationally in the next three years, and we are investing £17 million to fund the next expansion, but I will happily pass his comments on to my colleagues in the Ministry of Justice who specifically deal with the issue of family courts.
4 Jun 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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I point my hon. Friend to the measures that I have set out, including that enhanced offer for victims of rape and serious sexual violence and the pilot to extend that service to victims of domestic abuse in the Crown courts. It is important that we do everything we can to meet our ambition to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, which is why we have introduced measures such as Raneem’s law, embedding domestic abuse specialists in 999 call centres, and rolled out domestic abuse protection orders. We need to do everything we can to tackle the scourge of violence against women and girls.
4 Jun 2026 · Violence against Women and Girls · Hansard source
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I thank the hon. Gentleman for that question—I know that he is a huge champion on these issues. I was really pleased to secure that £5 million investment to enable victims of domestic abuse in the Crown court to be offered meetings with the prosecution team before a case gets to trial and to have the benefit of dedicated victim liaison officer. We know that attrition rates in these cases are still too high. That is why we are doing everything we can to bring them down. In Wales, for example, a domestic abuse charging pilot is going on, which enables the police to charge in some domestic abuse cases. We are seeing that significantly shorten the amount of time it takes to get a case into court, and we know that the quicker a case gets to court, the lower the attrition rate is likely to be. We are doing everything we can to tackle this issue.

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