We just want to know that the offence has taken place so that we can get a better understanding of the issue

We just want to know that the offence has taken place, so that we can get a better understanding of the issue.”. Proposals to make the poorest people in society contribute more to the cost of their legal aid cases – double in some instances – and for the introduction, for the first time, of cash-limited budgets provoked a wave of criticism from legal, advice and consumer groups yesterday. Male chaperons – trained officers who support and accompany the victim through police procedures – were introduced in 1991.”The system could work even better,” said Det Supt Grahamslaw. “We are undertaking a comprehensive review of the chaperon service so that we are better at meeting the victim’s needs.”We need to encourage more male victims to come forward and make them realise they don’t have to go to court. Prof King said male victims suffered as much psychological trauma as women who had been raped His study found the effects on men were devastating. Many as a result developed a phobic avoidance of going out or of other men, suffered severe depression or turned to substance abuse.A spokesman for Survivors said it was not uncommon for men to wait 20 years after the assault before telling anyone.Bill Grahamslaw, a Detective Superintendent with the Metropolitan Police, said strenuous efforts had been made by the police to encourage men to report crimes.

that one-on-one men can be intimidated and can’t always fight their attacker off.”Survivors, a London-based male rape helpline, estimates that there is a 50-50 split in their callers between homosexuals and heterosexuals.Prof King said attacks were much more likely to take place in the victim’s or assailant’s home, a theory backed up by Metropolitan Police figures.Double the number of men in the year up to 31 March have been raped in a flat as were attacked in a street, and three times as many men had been raped in a flat as in a park.For both men and women, the most likely age to be raped was 20 to 24, according to the police. The lack of recognition has helped to perpetuate many myths, such as that it is a crime exclusively committed by homosexuals on other homosexuals, or that a “real man” should be able to fight off a rapist.Speaking at a conference at De Montfort University, Leicester, Prof King said: “Stranger rape is seen as the norm, but the majority of men know the people attacking them It’s interesting that it’s the same for men as for women. Men find it difficult to believe that they can be held down and raped … “Age and sexual attractiveness were often irrelevant, as in the case of women,” said the professor.
Male rape was first recognised as a problem in the 1980s and became a crime in law last year. A study of 22 raped men, carried out by Prof King in 1989, found that those attacked were of a wide range of ages, with the oldest man assaulted being 84. Male rape victims are usually attacked in their homes by someone they know, a leading psychiatrist said yesterday. Like the rape of women, the “stranger rape” of men is in a small minority, said Professor Michael King, head of psychiatry at the Royal Free School of Medicine.

Mr Murray, who was accompanied by his family, placed his belongings into a black plastic bin-liner and put the bag under a table. Whether it was stolen or simply thrown away by a cleaner is unclear, but he has reported it to the real police as a suspected theft.A spokesman at The Bill’s Thames Television production unit said: “Billy Murray .. did have his bag stolen The members of the cast were there as private individuals What happened doesn’t have any bearing on the programme.”. ITV and the actors involved have kept the incident quiet for several days, as it was felt it might not be in keeping with the image of the series’ stars to be known to have had their possessions taken from under their noses.
It is particularly awkward as the actor involved, Billy Murray, who plays DS Beech, did not exactly follow the crime prevention code. He put his belongings – including a jacket, cash and a camcorder – in a bin- liner and stuck the bag under a table at a crowded party.The theft occurred when several of the cast of the ITV drama series went into the VIP marquee at The Who/Bob Dylan concert in Hyde Park to drink champagne with Virginia Bottomley, Mick Jagger and others. They may be the country’s best known police officers on prime time television. But in real life they’re just a bunch of absent-minded luvvies. The cast of The Bill are using their right to silence over one of their number having his belongings stolen.

At present, they apply for six colleges or universities on the basis of their predicted results.Vice-chancellors are considering a two-tier application system, with some candidates applying before their A-levels and some after results come out.. Delays were most common in English and medicine and for those who also applied to Oxbridge.One boy who inquired why a reply to his application had been delayed was told: “What do you expect when your name begins with W?”The heads argue that if students applied after they received their A- level results, the number of applications would be reduced because they would apply only for courses for which they had the right grades. Many pupils from our schools come from backgrounds which are very far from privileged.”In medicine, possible prejudice was reported against a Spanish girl and against Asian and Hong Kong pupils and against those who may decide not to practise in this country.One Catholic school felt that Oxford and Cambridge showed some prejudice towards Roman Catholics.Dr Philip Cheshire, head of Warwick School and co-chairman of the working party, said most of the problems identified by the survey were encountered by state as well as independent school candidates.Around 40 per cent of schools reported delays in universities’ response to candidates who applied in good time. Around half the entrants to Oxford and Cambridge come from fee- paying schools.Janet Lawley, head of Bury Grammar School for Girls and co-chairman of the working group on university admissions, said: “There are small numbers of examples of apparent prejudice where students have been questioned about their privileged background.”Tony Evans, chairman of the Headmasters’ Conference said: “It may well be that some admissions tutors are trying to redress what they perceive as an existing imbalance towards pupils from independent schools.