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4.1 In the time that has passed since the publication of Towards A Just Conclusion a number of developments have taken place, including the report of the Lord Advocate's Working Group on Child Witnesses, the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report and the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act for England and Wales. Other initiatives have also been taken forward in Scotland, notably the decision to extend the volunteer Witness Service to all Sheriff Courts, and the development of witness protection techniques by the Strathclyde Police Witness Protection Programme. New proposals include Crown Office based Victim and Witness Service accountable to the Lord Advocate, currently being examined, and a developing National Strategy for Victims. Other issues have also attracted greater attention, notably cross-examination in sex offence cases.
4.2 Some of these have overtaken certain recommendations in Towards A Just Conclusion . Other recommendations have already been implemented. But work remains to be done on a substantial number, and the planned next steps are detailed in this plan. The most complex area will be the proposed changes to the law of evidence, and further work to develop legislative proposals is required. The Executive is committed to taking these steps to improve the treatment of witnesses in the criminal justice system, and so tackling crime in our community.
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