Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 (Permitted Disclosures) Regulations 2025
Lord Lemos
That the Grand Committee do consider the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 (Permitted Disclosures) Regulations 2025.
Lord in Waiting/Government Whip (Lord Lemos) (Lab)
My Lords, the draft instrument before us seeks to amend Section 17 of the Victims and Prisoners Act. Section 17 was brought into force on 1 October this year. This has been debated in the House of Commons and is now to be debated in this House. Section 17 establishes in statute that confidentiality clauses, also known as non-disclosure agreements or, commonly, NDAs, cannot be enforced where they attempt to prevent victims reporting a crime to the police. In addition, Section 17 broadens this protection to include certain other disclosures necessary for victims to obtain confidential advice and support essential to coping with and recovering from the effects of crime.
With Section 17 now in force, NDAs entered into on or after 1 October 2025 will be legally unenforceable to the extent that they seek to restrict such disclosures. This means that anyone who is a victim of crime, or reasonably believes they are, may disclose relevant information to specific individuals or organisations for certain purposes related to the criminal conduct they have suffered. This applies notwithstanding the terms of any NDA they have signed.
Under the legislation, victims may make disclosures to the following bodies: the police or other bodies that investigate or prosecute crime; qualified lawyers; regulated professionals, including regulated healthcare professionals; victim support services; regulators; and a victim’s close family. These are known as the “permitted disclosures”. However, disclosures are to be permitted only if made for the relevant purpose specified in the legislation for each body. Disclosures for other purposes or to bodies not listed in the legislation are not permitted, and the NDA may remain enforceable in those cases.
To ensure that Section 17 fully achieves its policy aim, this instrument introduces three changes to it. First, it adds the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority, known as the authority, to the list of bodies to which victims can make a permitted disclosure. This is for the purpose of pursuing a claim under the taxpayer-funded compensation schemes it administers. These are the criminal injuries compensation scheme 2012 and the victims of overseas terrorism compensation scheme 2012. Victims sometimes feel unable to tell the authority about settlement agreements they have signed related to the criminal conduct they are seeking compensation for. This hesitation often stems from confidentiality clauses in those agreements. Such reluctance can make it harder for the authority to determine eligibility and may affect the amount of compensation awarded. Adding the authority to the list of permitted disclosures ensures that victims can provide relevant information to the authority for the purpose of a compensation claim related to the criminal conduct they have experienced without fear of breaching an NDA.
Secondly, the instrument will amend Section 17 to allow disclosures to courts and tribunals for the purpose of issuing or pursuing proceedings in relation to a decision by the authority on such claims. This makes clear that appropriate disclosures are permitted throughout the entire legal process for pursuing compensation from the schemes the authority administers. This includes the small number of cases where proceedings are pursued in relation to a compensation decision. It is essential that courts and tribunals have access to all relevant information, and this amendment makes clear that an NDA cannot be enforced against a victim sharing certain information with courts and tribunals in this context.
Thirdly, this instrument amends the definition of a “qualified lawyer” in Section 17(6) of the 2024 Act. Currently, under Section 17 victims may disclose information to a qualified lawyer for the purpose of seeking legal advice about the criminal conduct. However, the definition does not include registered foreign lawyers—those who qualified outside England and Wales but are registered with and regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. These lawyers can own and manage authorised law firms and, in certain circumstances, provide reserved legal services.
This change ensures that victims can make disclosures to any regulated lawyer in England and Wales for the purpose of seeking legal advice about criminal conduct without needing to confirm where their lawyer qualified. It removes unnecessary obstacles and ensures that victims can seek legal advice without fear of legal action under an NDA. If this instrument is approved, the changes will apply to NDAs entered into on or after the date on which it comes into force.
As noble Lords may know, the Government are seeking to make further changes to NDAs through an amendment to the Victims and Courts Bill tabled on Report in the Commons in October. This amendment will void NDAs to the extent that they seek to prevent a victim of crime, or someone who reasonably believes that they are a victim, speaking about criminal conduct to anyone for any purpose. This measure complements an amendment to the Employment Rights Bill that offers similar protections for workers in relation to certain work-related harassment or discrimination.
Lord Sandhurst (Con)
My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for introducing this statutory instrument, which concerns an issue of real importance to victims of crime and to the integrity of our justice system. These regulations, made under the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024, clarify and expand protections for victims who have signed non-disclosure agreements, otherwise known as NDAs.
We on this side of the Committee are proud to have brought forward the 2024 Act, and, crucially, to have created a mechanism to extend the list of bodies to whom disclosures may be made without fear of breaching an NDA. Today’s instrument makes use of that mechanism in a sensible and necessary way.
It is already well established that no NDA can prevent someone reporting a crime to the police, yet too often such agreements have a chilling effect. Victims may be unsure whether they can speak to a support service, a lawyer or even a close family member. Section 17 of the 2024 Act was intended to bring clarity and to void NDAs to the extent that they purport to prevent victims, or those who reasonably believe that they are victims, from speaking to specified bodies about criminal conduct.
These regulations go further. They add the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority to the list of permitted recipients and ensure that victims can disclose information needed for a compensation claim without risking legal consequences. No victim should face a choice between honouring an NDA and seeking redress for harm suffered. They also permit disclosure to a court or tribunal when challenging a decision of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority. That is a necessary provision for meaningful challenges.
The misuse of NDAs to obscure criminality has long troubled campaigners, lawyers and victims’ organisations. These regulations close important loopholes. They will ensure that victims can speak to the compensation authority, the courts and regulated lawyers, whether domestic or foreign, without the shadow of a legal threat. In conclusion, these are proportionate and sensible measures that strengthen the statutory framework that we established in 2024.
Lord Lemos (Lab)
I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Sandhurst, for his support for these measures and his contribution to this debate. As I have said, I believe that the changes we are seeking to make through this instrument will help to ensure that Section 17 comprehensively achieves the policy aim, and I therefore commend this draft instrument to the Committee.