Government plans to distribute money for victims and witnesses will see South Yorkshire short-changed by almost £150,000.

Figures produced by the Shadow Justice Minister, and MP for Barnsley Central, Dan Jarvis MP, reveal that the mechanism to be used by the Ministry of Justice will under resource services for victims of crime in South Yorkshire because the formula to be used is based solely on population, and won’t take into account the number of victims in the region.

Commenting on the plans, Dan Jarvis MP said:

“Innocent victims of crime across South Yorkshire are being short-changed by this Tory-led Government. Because of their unfair distribution of the money, important services that make a real difference to the experiences of victims and witnesses risk being cut. This is an affront to the dignity of people who through no fault of their own have been subjected to muggings, attacks, robbery and violence.

“If the Government really wants to be on the side of victims, they will rip up their plans and go back to the drawing board. Pushing ahead with these plans is a slap in the face to innocent victims of crime in South Yorkshire”