Domestic Abuse: Victims and Survivors

Lord Bishop of Newcastle Excerpts

Thursday 12th December 2024 Lords Chamber

[The Lord Bishop of Newcastle]

My Lords, homes and relationships should be places where people feel safe and loved but, with Northumbria Police receiving about 115 calls about domestic abuse per day, this is sadly not the case for many. The north-east has particularly high rates of domestic violence, at 19 per 1,000 population according to Health Equity North, while the average for the whole of England is 13.

Steps are being taken to reduce this number, with Northumbria Police having placed domestic abuse specialists in their emergency call rooms since 2022. The project has received positive feedback, and I welcome the Government’s plans to introduce this more widely through Raneem’s law.

At the end of May, I met the family of Holly Newton, a 15 year-old girl who was stalked and murdered by her ex-boyfriend in Hexham, Northumberland, which is in my diocese. The noble Baroness, Lady Chisholm, mentioned Holly in her opening speech. The law states that this case was not one of domestic abuse, as both the victim and the perpetrator were under the age of 16, and it was classified as knife crime. This places an emphasis on the weapon rather than the build-up to the crime, which showed clear signs of domestic abuse.

In light of the recent Youth Endowment Fund survey of teenagers aged 13 to 17, which found that 49% had experienced some form of violent or controlling behaviour in their relationships in the past year, what consideration have the Government given to lowering the age limit to include those under 16 in the definition of domestic abuse?

I commend the Government’s ambition to halve violence against women and girls in a decade, but I fear that it is not possible without more focus on prevention. Holly’s family have raised the need to improve relationship education. The YEF survey also found that only 40% of respondents had lessons on building healthy, respectful romantic relationships, and even fewer teens received practical advice on recognising or addressing unhealthy relationships. What steps are the Government taking to ensure that teenagers receive high-quality education on healthy relationships and spotting signs of violence and coercion?

Bold ambitions require bold actions. I hope that this Government have the courage to take the necessary actions, centring the voices of victims and survivors.