Criminal justice system and victim support: Lords general debate
23 January 2015
Members of the Lords debated government measures to improve access to the criminal justice system and victim support for people with autism on Thursday 22 January.
This was a topical question for short debate. The debate was requested by Baroness Uddin (Non-affiliated), in light of the case of Faruk Ali.
Several members spoke of the particular communication difficulties that can be faced by people with an autistic spectrum disorder. There were calls for more training in the criminal justice system and for government to do more to raise awareness of autism in society.
Justice minister, Lord Faulks (Conservative), responded and confirmed that the Ministry of Justice is signed up to the government's recently updated autism strategy. He confirmed that a cross-government group will be established to take forward issues with autism and the criminal justice system, and spoke of initiatives to improve training for prison and probation staff.
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