Alongside Women Against Rape (WAR) we submitted evidence to the Justice Committee on the Courts & Tribunals Bill. This Bill would abolish the “presumption of contact” in family law, something SNS has long campaigned for. It would also introduce stronger restrictions on the use of a complainant’s sexual history in rape trials, which WAR has long campaigned for. BUT the same Bill would abolish jury trials for any any case where the maximum sentence is 3 years or less, and we COMPLETELY OPPOSE THE ABOLITION OF JURY TRIALS in any situation. There is absolutely NO evidence that abolishing juries would speed up rape cases getting to court (as the government claims) and we agree with MP Charlotte Nichols who in her extraordinary and brave speech in Parliament on 17 March, said that rape victims were being used as a “cudgel” and that victims and defendants were being “pitted against each other in a way that is deeply damaging”. See Charlotte Nichols speech here.

Please write to your MP and tell them why the presumption of contact MUST be abolished but that you’re opposed to the abolition of jury trials. You are welcome to refer them to our evidence (below) or on the Justice Committee’s website here.