Interpersonal Abuse and Violence Against Men and Boys (Strategy)

1st reading
Wednesday 23rd April 2025 Commons Chamber

Motion for leave to bring in a Bill (Standing Order No. 23)

12.39 pm

[Ben Obese-Jecty (Huntingdon) (Con)]

I beg to move,

That leave be given to bring in a Bill to require the Secretary of State to prepare and publish a strategy for tackling interpersonal abuse and violence against men and boys; and for connected purposes.

This Labour Government have pledged to halve instances of violence against women and girls, an intent that I have no doubt those on both sides of this House are fully able to support. The aim of this Bill is to tackle an aspect of the current violence against women and girls strategy—an aspect that makes no sense and that it is essential for the Government to address.

The violence against women and girls strategy currently includes male victims of violence against women and girls. The Government still define violence against women and girls, or VAWG, as a category of crimes which disproportionately affect women. Therefore, all victims of crimes such as domestic abuse, rape, sexual assault, digital image abuse, forced marriage and honour-based violence, including men and boys, are considered victims of VAWG. I want to make it clear that this Bill in no way detracts from the work already done and still to be done in tackling violence against women and girls; the Bill simply aims to ensure that male victims of those crimes have a dedicated strategy that reflects the differing nature of their circumstances and ensures that male survivors are recognised and receive appropriate support. The current mis-categorisation forces male victims into spaces and discussions that may more appropriately be reserved for women.

At present the Government have no dedicated strategy for tackling interpersonal abuse and violence against men and boys. In 2019, the previous Government published their first ever position statement on male victims, and they followed this in 2022 with an addendum on supporting male victims. The change in Government and a revised strategy on violence against women and girls present a new opportunity to devise a parallel strategy for violence against men and boys in lieu of any direction from the Government regarding the publication of a new, updated position statement. The Minister for Safeguarding, the hon. Member for Birmingham Yardley (Jess Phillips), is, as I understand it, currently rewriting the violence against women and girls strategy for publication later this spring, and to that end, now is the time to legislate for such a change to be formalised.

It should be noted that when the Government state their hope to halve violence against women and girls, the start-state of that data currently includes victims who are men and boys. Victims of gender-based violence face many barriers that prevent them from reporting instances of abuse: the fear of not being believed; the threat that the perpetrator may still pose; or the simple fact of not being aware of the services available to help or being aware and not being able to access them. There are also the complexities around the consequences of disclosure, such as the impact on living arrangements or financial security and how this can, in turn, lead to instances of coercive control. For men and boys, however, there are additional factors: the shame and stigma of not appearing to be masculine, of being vulnerable, of potentially having their sexuality outed, and of being the victim of a crime considered, and officially referred to, as applying to female victims.

The majority of men seeking help have coped alone, often for long periods, and are still living with their abusive partners. Men in such circumstances might need help with housing and finances, and, in circumstances involving dependent children, with how they can maintain their role as a father. Safety planning for this group of men must be initiated at the point of disclosure, as the majority of those seeking help do not return to those providing it following first contact.

The crime survey for England and Wales for the year ending September 2024 showed that 3% of men aged 16 and over were victims of domestic abuse between September 2023 and September 2024, compared with 6.6% of women. According to Women’s Aid’s 2025 annual audit report, as of May 2024 there were just 50 refuges in England with bed spaces for men. As such, of a total of 63,950 people supported in safe accommodation in that period, only 1,830 were men.

There is also a difference in the needs of men who are gay, bisexual or trans. Owing to the complexities of the nature of these relationships and the risk of being outed, of being the victim of prejudice or of being disowned by family members, male victims are less likely to report domestic abuse to statutory services. Carlisle and Withers Green’s 2023 survey highlighted that over 70% of gay, bisexual and trans male victims of domestic abuse had never sought support from a statutory service provider. Their statistics are therefore not recorded in any official figures and as a result these victims find themselves further isolated, increasing their vulnerability to abuse.

Sexual abuse against men is a vastly under-reported crime: one in four adults sexually assaulted in the UK each year is a man; one in 10 rapes and one in seven sexual assaults have male victims according to the Office for National Statistics; 3.5% of boys become victims of child sexual abuse before they turn 16; one in four victims of child sexual abuse are men; and over 70% of child sex abusers are people known to their victims. Shame, stigma, homophobia and emasculation are all factors in preventing sexual abuse from being reported. It often takes years for a male victim to report a sexual assault to the police. Male sexual assault survivors are three times more likely to tell a family member, friend or colleague than they are to report an incident to the police. Data from the Office for National Statistics suggests that fewer than a third of male victims of sexual assault have ever disclosed what they have experienced.

For straight men, there can also be a hesitancy to disclose abuse owing to the misconception that men should be physically strong enough to prevent an assault. Male victims of abuse who have been forced to penetrate by a partner can struggle to identify their experiences as abuse because it caused them to be aroused. Rape and sexual abuse should never be minimised because a perpetrator is female. The law currently states that while males and females can be the victim of rape, only males can realistically commit the act of rape. The introduction of a “forced to penetrate” sexual offence could therefore address that.

Honour-based violence is another factor that is poorly understood and catered for. Victims of honour-based violence are at greater risk of repeat victimisation and are often at risk from multiple perpetrators. However, no discrete crime of so-called honour-based violence or abuse is defined in our legislation, so in most instances male victims would be classified by police as victims of violence without injury or stalking and harassment. Data from the Crown Prosecution Service suggests that around 30% of prosecutions for honour-based violence involve male victims.

Additionally, the forced marriage unit has consistently seen that 20% of forced marriage victims are male. That often includes men from overseas who are forced to marry UK citizens and can find themselves forced into domestic servitude, thus also becoming victims of modern slavery.

This time last year, Professor Nicola Graham-Kevan of the University of Lancashire undertook research and published data on how male survivors feel about being categorised as victims of violence against women and girls: 89% stated that it made it harder to seek help; 89% stated that they experienced distress; 88% stated that the Government do not care; 80% stated that it was minimising their experiences; 75% stated that it was not taken seriously; and 73% stated that it was not recognised by society. It is clear that the damaging impact of including male victims within a strategy that caters for violence against women and girls means that male survivors cannot identify with that labelling. Organisations such as We Are Survivors, the Men & Boys Coalition and the ManKind Initiative have been instrumental in providing support to male victims and advocating for a solution, and I thank them for their work to highlight this inequality.

Last November, the Victims’ Commissioner Baroness Helen Newlove wrote to the Safeguarding Minister outlining many of the same concerns that I have highlighted. The concerns are not unique; they are shared by the male survivor community. The view of the Victims’ Commissioner should not go unheeded, nor that of her predecessor Dame Vera Baird KC, who expressed similar views. The purpose of the Bill is echoed in Baroness Newlove’s words:

“I believe it is beyond time for a dedicated men and boys’ strategy, with specific policies, strategic milestones, and accompanying funding. A tailored approach for male victims of interpersonal violence is essential to developing their rights and ensuring the availability of appropriate support services. I urge you to seize this opportunity to create both a robust, cross-governmental VAWG strategy and a separate, comprehensive strategy for men and boys, with clear policies, strategic targets, milestones, and sustainable funding arrangements.”

Six months later, and with nothing further heard on implementing such a strategy, this Bill is required to push the Safeguarding Minister to act. My hope is that male survivors of such traumatic violence and abuse can finally be given the focus their plight deserves. I also hope that Members on both sides of the House feel they can support what the Bill sets out to achieve, and I thank them all for listening.

Question put and agreed to.

Ordered,

That Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Sir Roger Gale, Sir Ashley Fox, Charlie Dewhirst, Wendy Morton, David Simmonds, Paul Holmes, Rebecca Smith, Bob Blackman, Alison Griffiths, Mr Richard Holden and Ben Obese-Jecty present the Bill.

Ben Obese-Jecty accordingly presented the Bill.

Bill read the First time; to be read a Second time on Friday 16 May, and to be printed (Bill 224).