Victims of Criminal Injuries Could See Compensation Cut

Labour Party candidate for Wiltshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Clare Moody, has called on South Swindon’s MP, Robert Buckland, to “do the right thing” and protect victims of violent crime.

South Swindon MP Robert Buckland (Conservative) now sits on the committee which would oversee massive cuts to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme (CICS), with its first meeting set for November 1st.
 
The draft legislation being reviewed by the committee will reduce or abolish the compensation due to almost every innocent victim of violent crime, including those most seriously injured.  This impact is not justified by the savings, for which the case has been seriously over-stated by the Government.
 
The Government’s consultation on the CICS, ‘Getting it right for victims and witnesses’, painted a picture of a Scheme that was not sustainable, with historic liabilities of nearly £400m.
 
However, the 2011-12 accounts, together with analysis of the previous three years’ figures, give a very different picture of the current situation, one of a stable and sustainable scheme with average costs of £192m, well within the scheme’s budget of £200m.
CICS already only makes awards to those who cannot seek compensation from any other source.  And while this compensation gives recognition for the pain and suffering of the victim it also gives a sense of closure on an attack and helps victims to recover from the trauma.
 
Labour Party candidate for Wiltshire Police and Crime Commissioner, Clare Moody, has called on South Swindon’s MP, Robert Buckland, to “do the right thing” and protect victims of violent crime, she said “At a time when Wiltshire’s police force is already facing cuts it’s abhorrent to even consider additional cuts to support for victims.  Actions speak louder than words, the Tories’ actions say they want to punish victims of violent crimes.“
 
Clare continued “I call on South Swindon’s MP Robert Buckland to do the right thing and put an end to the senseless cuts to the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme.”