Data (Use and Access) Bill [HL]

Debate between Baroness Gohir and Lord Browne of Ladyton

Report stage
Tuesday 28th January 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Gohir (CB)]

My Lords, I support everything the noble Baroness, Lady Owen, has said. I declare my interests as set out in the register. I will briefly speak on Amendment 72 about sexually explicit audio abuse, which I have raised a couple of times before.

I am concerned about why, now the Government know and are aware that sexually explicit audio abuse is a thing, they do not want to act now. We have victims right now. Perpetrators are making these recordings and using them to threaten and blackmail. They share these recordings to shame their victims and to maintain power and control. In some communities where shame and honour are a thing, those victims are then at risk of honour-based abuse. With new technologies, you can create deepfake audio as well.

It feels like the Government are kicking this into the long grass. I welcome the Minister’s comments that this will be considered, but there seems to be no timetable; it could be years before action is taken. I wonder whether the Government are waiting for there to be more noise on the issue and for more victims to come forward before they take action. Why not nip this in the bud now? The Minister mentioned the crime and policing Bill. It would be good to know why, for example, it cannot be included in that. I hope that we can shut down this avenue of abuse now and prevent there being more victims.

[Lord Browne of Ladyton (Lab)]

My Lords, I will speak to Amendments 69 and 70, to which I have added my name. I support the other amendments in the group, but I will leave others to speak to them because they own them. I do not think my noble friend the Minister wishes me to support his amendment, given what he has told us.

I take this opportunity to pay tribute to the noble Baroness, Lady Owen of Alderley Edge, whose campaigning on these issues has been a model of its kind. She has brought not only passion and commitment but astonishing forensic scrutiny to bear on them. She is to be commended for getting us to the place we are in today. I hope my noble friend the Minister will help her get to the destination she has set for us, which is the appropriate destination for this legislation.

The noble Baroness also brought me and others into contact with victims and survivors of this appalling sexual abuse and those who support them, which has been an extraordinary privilege too. Mostly young women, they are immensely impressive in the way they have worked together. Almost all of the many thousands of victims there have already been of this appalling abuse have been extraordinarily well represented.

I also thank those who have supported them. I will pick out Professor Clare McGlynn KC of Durham University and read part of the briefing paper that she produced for this occasion. I hope that all noble Lords who wish to participate in this debate have seen it. I know it has had a significant effect on people; I will not mention who they are, but I know that when they read it they were significantly affected by it.