Suella Braverman considers anonymity ahead of suspects' indictment to end 'media circus'

Home Secretary Suella Braverman considering change radical change in the criminal justice system to ensure the anonymity of suspects before they are charged.

The minister said she was "reviewing" whether changes could be made to protect the privacy of suspects. people suspected of a crime in order to save them from a "media trial".

"I think we've had high profile cases where the media circus around a suspect - who doesn't hasn't been charged - maybe and was devastating," she told the Conservative conference. in Birmingham.

Mr. Braverman was asked about the issue at a Young Tories event following cases like Sir Cliff Richard, named at pre-charge stage after being falsely accused of historical sex offences.

"I think covering people up before charges can be very, very damaging, particularly if charges are not pursued or are later dropped," the Home Secretary said. "I think we need to look into this."

She added, "I think the police need to be allowed to carry out their investigations. The CPS needs to be allowed to make their decisions without pressure from the media, but individuals and suspects are entitled to a fair trial and a trial by the media will only undermine our justice system.”

Mr Cliff recently launched a campaign with radio DJ Paul Gambaccini - also falsely accused of historical sex offenses - to "restore balance" in the legal system so that those accused of offenses remain anonymous unless and until police issue charges.

< p >They are lobbying the government to include an amendment in the next Criminal Justice Bill because they believe "the privacy law provides inadequate protection".

Ms Braverman also suggested that she wanted to reduce the number of visas of students as part of a bid to reduce "low-skilled" immigration - by attacking some of the courses offered by shoddy educational institutions.

She told the event curator: "I think we're getting to a point where we have to look at some of the courses that people are taking in this country. Some institutions are not always of very good quality."

Ms Braverman added: "I think it is legitimate to ask whether this is really going to serve our economic objectives. Taking a smarter, smarter approach to student visa numbers, I think, is very much in line with our growth agenda. has been criticized for attacking family members of foreign students who "do not necessarily work or are in low-skilled jobs".

The Home Secretary told the Sun Sunday: "So students come on their student visas, but they bring in family members who can piggyback on their student visas.

"These people come here - they don't necessarily work or they're in low-skilled jobs and don't contribute to the growth of our economy,” she added.

The vice-chancellors told the Times Higher Education that they were "very disappointed" with Ms Braverman's comments.

Polly Mackenzie from University of the Arts London (UAL) said overseas students paid £6 billion sterling in tuition fees and "like amounts" on the cost of living in our economy. my, adding: "Higher education is one of Britain's best exports."