File on 4 Investigates Folgen

Do we understand enough about how memory works to properly assess evidence in sex abuse cases when allegations date back decades? Can juries make decisions based on their common sense in complex cases? The number of so called "historic abuse cases" making their way through the coruts has increased in recent years following changes in the law that make it easier to bring them to trial and a greater willingness on behalf of victims to come forward. These are among the most difficult cases the justice system handles given the highly sensitive nature of the allegations being made and the often lengthy gap between the events in question and the prosecution. Many cases now turn on one person's word against another and therefore rely heavily on the quality of memory evidence each side can bring. But even the memory experts are divided on how the court process should assess memory evidence. Whist many victims never forget their abuse, some psychologists say people can genuinely block out or forget abuse and then remember it in detail later in life. But others warn of "false memory syndrome" and claim that in some cases allegations are wrongly based on ideas that have arised during therapy or from third party experiences which complainants adopt as their own. In this week's File on 4, Jackie Long examines concerns from across the criminal justice system - from lawyers who claim the system is creating "a new genre of miscarriages of justice" because defendants cannot get a fair trial, from victims who say their long-held memories are being branded as false in court and from psychologists who question how well equipped our courts are to consider such evidence. So how much do we know about how memory works? And is the courtroom the right place to get to the truth? Producer Sally Chesworth.

Is the NHS doing enough to combat the crisis in organ donations for transplants? Allan Urry examines the challenge of ensuring more suitable donors are available at a time when those waiting for life saving operations are increasing. Surgeons are reporting worse outcomes for some patients, as poorer quality organs have to be used because of chronic shortages. This comes despite a big drive by the Department of Health to improve availability. But, are opportunities to recover more organs being missed because of the way doctors manage the care of patients who are close to death? Producer: Paul Grant.

File On 4. Banks and fraud squads across the world are beginning the task of tracing a vast fortune stolen from the Egyptian people by members of the Mubarak regime. Some estimates have suggested the missing money could run into many billions of pounds. Ministers, businessmen and members of the president's family have deposited vast sums in Swiss bank accounts and bought luxury properties in London. Where did all this wealth come from? How was the Egyptian government able to continue abusing its power for three decades? And could the regime's business partners in multinational corporations really have been blind to what was happening? Fran Abrams travels to Egypt to investigate and to assess the chances of the money being recovered. Producer: Ian Muir-Cochrane.