Victims of violent crime face an "unacceptable ordeal in the courtroom", a former chief prosecutor has claimed.
Sir Keir Starmer said most victims had little faith in the system and many lacked the confidence to come forward.
Unveiling a raft of ideas which could form part of a new victims' law, Mr Starmer said vulnerable witnesses could be questioned by a trial judge, rather than cross-examined by a barrister.
He is part of a Labour taskforce making proposals for England and Wales.
The Conservatives said the government was already piloting new ideas to protect victims.
Victims 'deterred'Ahead of the first meeting of the taskforce, Sir Keir - who served as director of public prosecutions between 2008 and 2013 - said measures previously deemed "no-go areas" should be considered.
"The consensus pretty much is that most victims don't have the confidence to come forward and if they do come forward they say they'd never do it again," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
"Now that isn't good enough."
Writing in the Guardian, he added: "Most victims have so little faith in our criminal justice system that they do not access it at all."
The Crown Prosecution Service's own website currently offers the following advice to witnesses:
- "If you are a witness for the prosecution the Crown Prosecutor or Crown Advocate will ask you questions first, then the defence will ask you questions. This is known as cross-examination."
- "Although it can be worrying, cross-examination is an essential part of our justice system."
- "It isn't personal: it's the lawyers' job to make sure you have not made a mistake."
- "You are not on trial: The lawyers are not trying to make people think you are stupid, or call you a liar. If the questions become too aggressive, the lawyer who called you as a witness has a right to ask the judge or magistrates to change their style of questioning."
- "The law in England and Wales is based on the idea that a defendant is innocent until proven guilty: cross-examination tests your evidence to make sure it really proves something."
Labour's taskforce is examining whether victims of violence or sexual abuse should be required to go to a police station to report a crime.
Sir Keir, who stood down as director of public prosecutions last year, said this requirement "puts many off from the start" and suggested this process could take place somewhere else.
He said the combative atmosphere of court cross-examination had obvious downsides for some witnesses, adding: "Perhaps judges should be given the task of questioning young and vulnerable witnesses?"
One victim of sexual abuse told the BBC she was interviewed by a lone, male police officer and in court was accused of being a "promiscuous drug-taker" and a prostitute.
Mary, who did not want to be identified, said the perpetrator was found not guilty after attacking her when she was 16.
"I left feeling that sex offenders are in fact protected by the legal system," she said.
"They are the ones who are prepped, conditioned and kept informed about the trial."
'Aggressive and intimidating'Making it compulsory for people working with children to report suspicions of sexual abuse could also feature in the victims' law.
The taskforce also includes Labour peer Baroness Lawrence, mother of murdered teenager Stephen, and Peter Neyroud, former chief constable of Thames Valley Police and now a criminologist at Cambridge University.
Labour leader Ed Miliband said: "It is time for a radical change in approach and I am delighted that the taskforce will look at the end-to-end service victims receive."
On behalf of the government, Justice Secretary Chris Grayling said more money than ever before was available for victims' services.
He said: "We are also piloting pre-trial cross-examination to help young and vulnerable witnesses give evidence without going through what can be an aggressive and intimidating court experience."
A new victims' panel would allow people affected by crime to tell ministers about their experience, he said.
He added: "We will continue to work with others to ensure victims get the help they need to come to terms with and recover from the traumatic effects of crime."
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