Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has held recent discussions with the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office on guidance for judges on handling cases involving rape and sexual assault.

The Judicial Conduct Investigations Office (JCIO) is the independent statutory body which supports the Lord Chancellor and Lady Chief Justice in their joint responsibility for judicial discipline. JCIO’s statutory remit is to deal with complaints of misconduct made against judicial office holders made by individuals. The JCIO is not responsible for judicial training.

To preserve the independence of the judiciary, the Lady Chief Justice, Senior President of Tribunals and Chief Coroner have statutory responsibility for judicial training, under the Constitutional Reform Act 2005, Courts and Enforcement Act 2007, and Coroners and Justice Act 2009 respectively. The Lady Chief Justice is responsible for issuing guidance to the judiciary in England and Wales, and for the provision of its training, which is delivered by the Judicial College. All judges who hear criminal cases involving allegations of rape and serious sexual offences are required to attend specialist training provided by the Judicial College. The Judicial College also provides guidance in relation to cases involving allegations of rape and sexual assault in the Crown Court Compendium and Equal Treatment Bench Book, which are available at the following links:

Crown Court Compendium - June 2023 - Courts and Tribunals Judiciary

Equal Treatment Bench Book - Courts and Tribunals Judiciary