Victim Personal Statements

(asked on 17th December 2018) - View Source

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the guidance issued on the Victim's Code requires the reading out of victim personal statements in open court.


Answered by
Edward Argar Portrait
Edward Argar
Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
This question was answered on 20th December 2018

There is no requirement for victims, or anyone else on their behalf, to read out a victim personal statement in open court. There is a presumption that a victim should be allowed to read their statement in full if they wish to do so. However, whether the statement is read in open court, who reads it, and which sections of the statement are read, is at the discretion of the trial judge. A Joint Agency Guide to the Victim Personal Statement provides practical advice for criminal justice practitioners who might be involved in the process. It is publicly available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/victim-personal-statement

Reticulating Splines