Harpreet Uppal
Main Page: Harpreet Uppal (Labour - Huddersfield)Department Debates - View all Harpreet Uppal's debates with the Home Office
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Jess Phillips
All I can say is that there is a reason that I cannot stand in front of the victims, who I am meant to be getting feedback from right now, and definitely say when the chair will come. I could have just put my finger in the air and picked out some random judge—we could have done that—but I am listening to victims’ feedback. Again, I have to stress that that process is not easy. There are difficult dynamics within groups of people and the people who we have asked to engage are dealing with difficult things, so undoubtedly, that is not uncomplex. As anyone who has worked with groups of people who have been wronged, shamed and treated badly will know, it would be a lie to stand here and tell them that there is a straight line and a simple answer—and I am not willing to do that.
Harpreet Uppal (Huddersfield) (Lab)
I thank the Minister for her continued work. All victims and survivors have not had their voice heard for too long. We need to ensure that that happens and I am sure that the Minister is doing that. Will she confirm what resources are available to ensure that survivors are properly supported through the process? On system delays, we know that there are still issues with court delays and ensuring we go after all the perpetrators. Will she give an update on that and on the Jay inquiry recommendations?
Jess Phillips
I will chair an interministerial cross-Government group next week to push through the other recommendations. Baroness Casey made 12 recommendations, but people rarely speak about any of the others. This was not her most pressing one; instead, she gave primacy to the policing-related recommendation around Operation Beaconport. As I said in my previous statement on 2 September, the work on the 216 cases that moved forward is ongoing and runs alongside this. That is where justice will be served: in our courts—if only they had not been horrendously degraded so that rape victims wait for years and years.