Domestic Abuse
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Baroness Crawley
Baroness Crawley (Lab) [V]
Can the Minister inform the House of what recent discussions the Government have had with the CPS to prioritise domestic violence cases during the Covid-19 outbreak? Also, the Minister mentioned the “You are not alone” campaign, which we all welcomed with open arms. Have the Government made any assessment of the effectiveness of the campaign so far?
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
In answer to the first question, on 21 May the Prime Minister hosted a virtual summit on hidden harms and the Home Secretary chaired a session with policing leads and relevant commissioners to explore how we can ensure that law enforcement agencies and those right across the criminal justice system are able to meet the demands of the pandemic and provide confidence that the perpetrators will be brought to justice. On the efficacy of the “You are not alone” campaign, the website has had more than 250 million hits. Right at the beginning of the crisis, the Government updated the advice on GOV.UK, which we continue to update throughout the pandemic.
Student Loans
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Baroness Crawley
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
My Lords, my noble friend raises a very important point, particularly for the many Muslim students who study or wish to study in our universities. I do not have that information to hand, but I will find out and write to him with the answer.
Baroness Crawley (Lab) [V]
My Lords, it must be reassuring to students that the website that is the subject of this Question has now been amended, but does the Minister accept that, in the wake of the severe economic recession that the UK is now passing through, the whole structure, purpose and practice of the Student Loans Company, based as it is on the assumption of very high graduate employment for decades to come, now looks seriously unfit for purpose and, indeed, should be the subject of a root and branch review?
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
My Lords, the Augar review was just such a review; the Government are considering that carefully and will respond alongside the spending review.