Member

I have given careful consideration as to whether the Government can accept the noble and learned Lord’s amendment, but I have concluded that parts of the proposed approach risk increasing the likelihood of a victim being cross-examined on their VPS. While a judge is always good at ignoring irrelevant material, where a VPS contains inadmissible or irrelevant material, the defence is always going to want to be heard about that to protect the position of their client. The Government are determined that the sentencing hearing should not become any more contentious than is absolutely necessary, because this adds to the stress and upset for victims.