Asked by: Lord Lebedev (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to publish a clear and legally precise definition of the term “cumulative disruption” as used in Lords committee stage amendment 372 to the Crime and Policing Bill; and how they will ensure that this concept is applied consistently by police forces and the courts.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
On 5 October 2025, the Home Secretary announced that the government would amend sections 12 and 14 of the Public Order Act 1986 to explicitly require a senior police officer to take account of the cumulative impact of frequent protests on local areas when considering whether to impose conditions on public processions and assemblies.
This measure is designed to require the police to consider whether public processions and assemblies have or will take place in the same geographical area when considering whether the serious disruption to the life of the community threshold is met. ‘Relevant cumulative disruption’ is defined in the clause.
The Home Office will work with the College of Policing and National Police Chiefs’ Council to include guidance on cumulative disruption in the Public Order Public Safety Authorised Professional Practice, and the Protest Operational Advice Document. These contain operational advice for frontline policing and are regularly updated to include all public order powers.
Asked by: Lord Lebedev (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how the Crime and Policing Bill proposal regarding a prohibition on face coverings when in an area designated by police is compatible with the right to freedom of expression.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The government is committed to protecting public safety and preventing disorder and crime whilst balancing the right to peaceful protest.
Under the provisions in clauses 118 to 120 of the Crime and Policing Bill, the police can only designate a locality for the purposes of the offence of concealing identity at protests where a senior officer reasonably believes that a protest is or may take place in the locality, that the protest is likely to involve or has involved the commission of offences, and it is expedient in order to prevent or limit offences being committed to designate the locality.
The measure includes a defence for individuals charged with this new offence if they prove they wore or used the item for a purpose related to health, religious observance or relating to the person’s work.
As such, a locality will only be designated where criminality has or is likely to take place, and under this new measure, the police will be expected to take action only against persons who are wearing or using items to conceal their identity at protests in a designated locality, without a legitimate purpose. Given these safeguards, the government is satisfied that this measure does not disproportionately interfere with individuals’ human rights.
Asked by: Lord Lebedev (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the decision to stop investigating non-crime hate incidents on the rate of hate incidents in London, and what data they hold to support that assessment.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
All police forces in England and Wales continue to record non-crime hate incidents (NCHIs) and retain them as intelligence, making local decisions, as appropriate on whether further investigation is appropriate. The Home Office does not collate data on NCHIs.
The College of Policing and the National Police Chiefs’ Council are currently undertaking a review of NCHIs, working closely with the Home Office. We look forward to receiving the final recommendations of the review shortly and will consider them carefully.
Asked by: Lord Lebedev (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, in the light of the findings in the report National Audit on Group-based Child Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, published on 16 June, what plans they have to provide compensation to victims.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government is making reforms to better support victims of child sexual abuse and prioritise their rights, including making it easier for victims to pursue compensation claims in the civil court.
The Government has included a measure in the Crime and Policing Bill to remove the three-year time limit for victims to bring civil personal injury child sexual abuse claims, so that claims do not need to be brought within three years of turning 18. This change is significant because we know that it can take decades for survivors to disclose sexual abuse.
Victims, including children, who suffer a serious physical or mental injury as a direct result of a violent crime such as physical and sexual abuse, may also be able to access compensation under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme. Payments under the Scheme are an expression of public sympathy and are intended to be an acknowledgment of the harm that eligible applicants have experienced.
The Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA) has worked to improve its service for compensation applicants, including providing its staff with specific training on the impact of psychological and emotional trauma in sexual abuse cases, and guidance on applying the exceptional circumstances discretion to sexual abuse cases - particularly child sexual abuse.