Scope Articles

The justice system needs more sympathy for victims of child sexual abuse

8 Mar 2022

Children and young people who report abuse are left isolated by a justice system that is not adjusted to their needs. The Children’s Commissioner wants that to change. This could mean huge reform of how criminal trials work.

Portugal, Scotland and the case for decriminalising drug use

13 Jan 2022

Would substance abuse be less of a problem if the police were less involved? This is a complicated question but evidence suggests that Northern Ireland could do better.

One of the worst consequences of lockdown is an increase in domestic abuse

7 Apr 2020

Frontline charity workers who work to tackle violence and other abusive behaviour in the home have been designated key workers during the coronavirus outbreak.

How is NI performing? (Part two)

NI - it's a beautiful place (photo by Thomas Kelley on Unsplash)

8 Oct 2019

The second in our trio of articles taking an accessible look at how our public sector is doing, by its own measure.

Crime and mental illness

7 Jun 2019

The announcement that all police custody suites are to get full-time nurses is an important and welcome development.

Global goals lack local focus

23 May 2019

The UN Sustainable Development Goals are nearly four years old. High-level strategies for the world (or 193 UN member nations) to build a “better and more sustainable future”. Too few people know what they are.

The Justice Department wants your views on how best to beat internet grooming and child abuse

28 Feb 2019

How justice agencies and the law tackle online child sexual exploitation is evolving. Common availability of the internet is only about 20 years old – while the reach and nature of usage has changed massively in the last decade.

Human Rights in NI – sleepwalking towards disaster

Lord Duncan of Springbank, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, and Commissioner Les Allamby at the launch of the statement this week

14 Dec 2018

The Human Rights Commission published its Annual Statement this week. We have plenty of problems, too few solutions, and the problems stemming from our lack of a government only ever grow in number.

The justice system needs to change – like it has many times before

23 Nov 2018

Key principles of our justice system could be bent or broken in cases of sexual violence. Perhaps they need to be – and, really, that’s nothing new.

Justice is rare for victims of rape

15 Nov 2018

The criminal justice system is failing rape victims in Northern Ireland. The third sector provides good support for anyone affected – but structural reform is necessary. Scope speaks with Victim Support NI.

Children in NI face plenty of problems (part two)

5 Jul 2018

The second half of our look at NICCY’s Statement on Children’s Rights in NI focuses on safeguarding – including protections from child sexual exploitation and bullying, and fair treatment for those subject to immigration control.

Secular disagreements and the risk of circular discussions

A still from the new NIHRC/EANI animation

27 Apr 2018

Northern Ireland - like much of the world - is becoming more secular. However, this means different things to different people, which makes the process more difficult.

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