| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act to make provision about victims of criminal conduct and others affected by criminal conduct; about the appointment and functions of advocates for victims of major incidents; for an infected blood compensation scheme; about the release of prisoners; about the membership and functions of the Parole Board; to prohibit certain prisoners from forming a marriage or civil partnership; and for connected purposes. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 2024 c. 21 |
| Introduced by | (Commons) Lord Bellamy, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Justice (Lords) |
| Territorial extent |
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| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 24 May 2024 |
| Commencement | various [c] |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
| Amended by | |
| Relates to | |
Status: Partly in force | |
| History of passage through Parliament | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
The Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 (c. 21) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, introduced by the Secretary of State for Justice, Dominic Raab, in March 2023. [1]
Contents
The act makes provision for the establishment of an Independent Advocate to support victims of major incidents, and makes changes to the parole system of England and Wales, allowing government ministers to veto the release of some prisoners. Ministers will also have the power to restrict marriage in prisons in England and Wales for those serving whole life orders. [2] The bill was introduced into Parliament on 29 March 2023. [3] It was one of the last pieces of legislation passed into law by the parliament elected in 2019 before it was dissolved prior to the 2024 general election. [4]
In December 2023, an amendment was added to the legislation that establishes a compensation scheme for victims of the contaminated haemophilia blood products scandal. The government failed to prevent the amendment in a vote in the House of Commons, despite a three-line whip, in what was seen as a significant blow to the Sunak administration's authority. [5] [6]
Section 34(2) provides for significant incidents to be declared as "major incidents" and for the Independent Public Advocate (IPA) to be called upon to support victims of the incident in partnership with relevant authorities. [7]
One of its first times the provision of the act were used was in August 2024, in order to prevent the serial killer Levi Bellfield from entering into a civil partnership with his girlfriend. [8]