I met recently with the regional Director of Victim Support, a national charity that provides local support to victims of crime and witnesses.

It does this via a network of over 7,000 volunteers - 180 of them in Sussex -  and is hailed by the Charities Commission for providing value for money.

The charity rightly prides itself on the fact that 94% of the victims they help say they have done a good job, as do 96% of the witnesses.

Four years ago victim support was delivered by 77 local organisations who came together to form one charity because of evidence that victims and the tax payer would get a better deal.

Now the Government is proposing to break up the service again and divert money that could be spent on support for victims of anti-social behaviour or those exposed to domestic violence on bureaucracy and red tape.

They want to revert to local commissioning with all the risks of a postcode lottery - and opening the door to far greater private sector involvement in the provision of services.

None of this is good for victims nor does it make sense at a time when the need to cut public spending is a constant refrain.

So I have today written to the Minister to object to the proposals and asking why the Government is so intent on 'fixing' something that isn't broken to start with.

And I would urge anyone concerned about these plans to sign the e-petition here before 18 July.