Victims and survivors will be at the centre of the Inquiry’s work. We are putting in place arrangements to enable the widest possible participation and will ensure that those who wish their voices to be heard have an opportunity. This will include evidence giving as well as the opportunity for victims and survivors to share their experiences more broadly. Two ways in which we will enable this participation is through a Victim and Survivors Consultative Panel and a Liaison Group.
The Victim and Survivors Consultative Panel (VSCP) will provide advice and guidance to Justice Goddard and the panel as the Inquiry proceeds. The eight strong membership will be nominated by victims and survivors, to bring a representative and cross-section of experience and opinion. Nominations for applications to the VSCP will be assessed against published criteria.
The Victims and Survivors Liaison Group will be a less formal network and will provide a forum through which victims and survivors, and their representatives, can exchange information and ideas with one another and convey their views to the Inquiry. Membership for this group will be open. These two groups are part of the Inquiry’s wider approach to engagement.
As Justice Goddard stated during her appearance at the Home Affairs Select Committee and in her subsequent statement on 12 March, there are significant issues with appointing victims and survivors to the Inquiry Panel. Primarily, there is the high likelihood of legal challenge if victims and survivors are on the panel on the basis of them having direct interests in the subject matter. The panel will be expected to act in a quasi-judicial capacity during the course of the statutory inquiry. This may result in challenges to the legal objectivity and independence of the panel if any member is deemed to have any personal interest in the subject matter, as well as the strong likelihood of judicial reviews on the impartiality of the panel. This is reinforced by a requirement in section 9(1)(a) of the Inquiries Act 2005 that the Minister must not normally appoint a panel member if they have a direct interest in the matter to which the inquiry relates. It is therefore better to ensure victims and survivors’ voices are heard in a way that will ensure their input but not stall or stop the important work of the Inquiry. Also, and importantly, victims and survivors groups reflect a wide range of different experiences and views. Therefore, the selection of only one or two victims or survivors to serve on the Inquiry panel could not adequately reflect the broad cross-section of that experience and opinion across all victim and survivor groups and could not do justice to the collective input that is required from victims and survivors. The Victims and Survivors Consultative Panel, which will meet the Chair, members of the Panel and attend panel meetings in a consultative capacity as required, will allow for better representation. A statement setting out in more detail the role of the VSCP and the criteria for appointment has today been published on the Inquiry website inviting nominations.
At a meeting with victims and survivors and representatives on Tuesday 8 April, members of the Secretariat provided an update on progress made including: