Speaking in today’s Assembly Debate on Rape and Sexual Abuse, North Wales Assembly Member Mark Isherwood welcomed the Prime Minister’s pledge to do more bring perpetrators of violent and sexual crimes to justice and emphasised that “this is not an England or Wales issue, but a cross border one”.
Mr Isherwood referred to the fact that North Wales saw a 126% increase in the number of recorded rapes between 2014-2019, and that like all other Police Forces in Wales, North Wales saw big decrease in the number of cases referred to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).
Speaking in the Chamber he said:
“As last Month’s HM Crown Prosecution Service Inspectorate Rape Inspection 2019 report for England and Wales stated: ‘There has been a substantial increase in the number of allegations of rape and yet the number of rape prosecutions has fallen significantly’.
“Responding to this report, the new UK Government said: ‘These findings are deeply concerning. Victims deserve to know they will be supported and the Prime Minister has been clear that more has to be done to bring perpetrators of violent and sexual crimes to justice.
‘To put this right we are conducting a full review of the criminal justice system’s response, recruiting 20,000 more police, giving £85m million to the Crown Prosecution Service, creating extra prison places and making sure violent and sexual offenders spend longer behind bars.
‘Clearly there is more to do, but this Government is committed to restoring confidence in the justice system and providing better support for victims’.
Mr Isherwood added:
“Although, South Wales saw a 179% increase in recorded rapes between 2014-2019, Dyfed Powys a 167% increase, Gwent a 147% increase and North Wales a 126% increase – a total of 2,218 recorded cases - all four Police Forces saw big decreases in the number of cases referred to the CPS, the numbers charged and the numbers which resulted in a conviction.
“However, I can only find one reference in the Thomas Commission Report on ‘Justice in Wales’ to any cross-border criminality, which is in the context of County Lines along the M4 corridor and North Wales - and the solution it proposes is joint working across the four Welsh forces in collaboration with other agencies, without reference to partners across the border.
“In reality, North Wales Police report increased collaboration with Merseyside and Cheshire forces and share their Regional Organised Crime Unit with neighbouring English Forces.
“Wales has an East-West axis of crime and justice - and calls for the devolution of criminal justice to Wales fail to recognise that criminal activity does not recognise national or regional boundaries, and that 48% of people in Wales live within 25 miles of the border with England, 90% within 50 miles of the border. In contrast, only 5% of the combined population of Scotland and England lives within 50 miles of their border.
“It is therefore regrettable that the ‘Justice in Wales Report’ focuses to a large extent on the transitory policies of Governments and Parties each side of the border, which come and go, rather than on whether the constitutional principle of the devolution of criminal justice would create a fairer, more just system for everybody.
“If, instead, we are going to evolve into a more effective system that recognises the increasingly federalised and the federalising nature of the UK, we will need to look to more of a networked system, rather than simply trying to draw lines between systems according to where national borders lie”.
ENDS
