Three hundred women will be raped today yet only 1% of those cases - just three - will make it to court, Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper warned.
In a passionate speech slamming the Tories for failing to get a grip on rape charges, the MP blasted the Government, saying it had “totally failed to have a proper system in place to recruit the detectives that we need and that is why you've then got victims not getting justice”.
Ms Cooper said: “The really most shocking figure of all is that probably today around 300 women will have been raped. Of those, about 190 cases will be reported. And of those, less than a handful, maybe about three cases will make it to court.
“Over the last few years, the last six years in particular, the number of criminals being charged has plummeted and the charge rate has gone down to just one in 20 recorded crimes having been charged.
“That is worse for serious sexual violence and for domestic abuse as well.”
Speaking at a recording of Matt Forde ’s The Political Party podcast, Ms Cooper blamed 12 years of Conservative mismanagement as the reason for overstretched and unsupported police forces which have led to historically low charge rates “whether that be on fraud, whether that be on domestic abuse”.
She told the podcast, which is to host Emily Maitlis, Jon Sopel and Sir Keir Starmer in the new year, “victims are being let down”
She vowed that a Labour Government “would be very serious about getting justice for victims”.
It follows a damning Government-commissioned report that exposed persistent failings in the criminal justice system in its tackling of rape.
The report found there was a failure to track repeat suspects, “explicit victim-blaming” and botched investigations last week.
The long-awaited independent report looked into the first year of Operation Soteria Bluestone - a unique police and CPS programme to develop new operating models for the investigation and prosecution of rape in England and Wales by June 2023.
It marks one of the first times academics have had access to such a range of police records and have worked with select forces to understand investigations.
Academics said: “At worst, officers demonstrated explicit victim blaming and lack of belief in the victim, which impacted on the subsequent investigation.
“For example, victim credibility was often focused on and used to either close or not investigate cases within some forces.”
The report also found serving officers who “don’t think that [sexual offences] should be a priority for policing”.
“Some stated that they believed that most reports of rape are just examples of ‘regretful sex’, or that if victims presented additional issues, such as mental health problems or alcohol/substance misuse, then this was the victim’s problem and the legal system was not obligated to safeguard them,” it added.
When asked about the report, the PM’s spokesperson said: “Every victim should know and deserves to know that their case will be taken serious. We're determined to ensure that all parts of the criminal justice system are held accountable for improving outcomes for victims.
“That's why we're reforming the way that the police and the CPS work together to respond to rape cases. We set out the rape action plan 18 months on we're making progress and we're trying to make sure victims get the justice that they deserve.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “It’s very clear that there is still a long way to go in tackling rape. That’s why we’re working on an ambitious programme, Operation Soteria, which aims to transform rape investigations and prosecutions.
“We are pleased that significant progress is being made according to the latest Rape Review Progress Update. The Government is on track to meet its target of more than doubling the number of adult rape cases reaching court by the end of this parliament.
“But we must go further. We need the police to do more and raise the bar, so that victims know they will be taken seriously and the criminals responsible are put behind bars."
