Radical changes to the way vulnerable witnesses are treated in court are being considered by the Labour Party.
Under plans for England and Wales, some witnesses and crime victims could be questioned by a trial judge, rather than cross-examined by barristers.
It is one idea being considered by the taskforce drawing up Labour's proposed victims' law, led by former chief prosecutor Sir Keir Starmer.
The Conservatives are understood to be considering their own victims' law.
Victims 'deterred'Ahead of the first meeting of the taskforce, Sir Keir - who served as director of public prosecutions between 2008 and 2013 - said measures previously deemed "no-go areas" should be considered.
Writing in the Guardian, he said many victims were not coming forward because of a lack of faith in the criminal justice system.
He said: "And the issue that deters them is simply the way in which they are likely to be treated if they come forward."
The Crown Prosecution Service's own website currently offers the following advice to witnesses:
- "If you are a witness for the prosecution the Crown Prosecutor or Crown Advocate will ask you questions first, then the defence will ask you questions. This is known as cross-examination."
- "Although it can be worrying, cross-examination is an essential part of our justice system."
- "It isn't personal: it's the lawyers' job to make sure you have not made a mistake."
- "You are not on trial: The lawyers are not trying to make people think you are stupid, or call you a liar. If the questions become too aggressive, the lawyer who called you as a witness has a right to ask the judge or magistrates to change their style of questioning."
- "The law in England and Wales is based on the idea that a defendant is innocent until proven guilty: cross-examination tests your evidence to make sure it really proves something."
The taskforce is also examining whether victims of violence or sexual abuse should be required to go to a police station to report a crime. Sir Keir, who stood down as director of public prosecutions last year, said this requirement "puts many off from the start" and suggested this process could take place somewhere else.
And he said the entire court system "needs to be addressed", pointing out that victims can find themselves being cross-examined by both sides for hours or even days in complex cases.
"The idea that if the prosecution and defence attack each other as fiercely as possible the truth will somehow pop out has its attractions, but for particularly young and vulnerable witnesses there are obvious downsides", he said, adding: "Perhaps judges should be given the task of questioning young and vulnerable witnesses?"
Making it compulsory for people working with children to report suspicions of sexual abuse could also feature in the victims' law.
The taskforce also includes Labour peer Baroness Lawrence, mother of murdered teenager Stephen, and Peter Neyroud, former chief constable of Thames Valley Police and now a criminologist at Cambridge University.
Labour leader Ed Miliband said: "It is time for a radical change in approach and I am delighted that the taskforce will look at the end-to-end service victims receive."
On behalf of the government, Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said more money than ever before was available for victims' services.
He said: "We are also piloting pre-trial cross-examination to help young and vulnerable witnesses give evidence without going through what can be an aggressive and intimidating court experience."
A new victims' panel would allow people affected by crime to tell ministers about their experience, he said.
He added: "We will continue to work with others to ensure victims get the help they need to come to terms with and recover from the traumatic effects of crime."
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