Slough MP welcomes Government dropping plans to give anonymity to rape defendants

Fiona Mactaggart, Member of Parliament for Slough, said:

"I am glad that the pressure that I and other MPs put on the Conservative/Lib Dem government has led to the ending of this ill-thought-out policy proposal.

I started an Early Day Motion to oppose the change on 26 May; it was signed by 103 MPs and we have continued our pressure on the government. As the Secretary of the All-Party Group on Domestic and Sexual Violence, I organised a well-attended meeting of MPs and others when we heard from Baroness Vivien Stern, who carried out a review for the last government on rape and prosecution.

Parliament debated the issue on 7 June and on 8 July, when Ministers agreed that they would continue to consult and to seek views on this. The decision now is a victory for justice, common sense and women in Parliament."

The text of Fiona Mactaggart's Early Day Motion follows:

That this House believes that the Government's proposal to grant anonymity to defendants in rape cases sends a message to juries and rape victims that the victim is not to be believed; fears that this could inhibit the effective prosecution of serial rapists; is further concerned that this will reverse the progress made on the prosecution of rape cases noted in the independent Stern Review; is further concerned that the Government has put forward the proposal without any research, evidence or examination of these issues; and calls on the Government to withdraw its proposal.