Female Genital Mutilation

Baroness Thornton Excerpts

Wednesday 16th July 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Hermer (Lab)]

I can reassure the noble Lord that I am determined to work with the Crown Prosecution Service, which I superintend, to increase the rate of prosecutions. I am determined we do that in a joined-up way, together with other parts of government and arm’s-length bodies, to ensure there is a whole-system approach to this abhorrent practice.

[Baroness Thornton (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Thomas of Gresford (LD)]

My Lords—

--- Later in debate ---

[Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms and Chief Whip (Lord Kennedy of Southwark) (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, it is the turn of the Labour Benches.

[Baroness Thornton (Lab)]

My Lords, first I will pay tribute to our noble friend Baroness Rendell, who championed this and ensured it was put on the statute book; she is much missed by all of us. Does my noble and learned friend agree that one of the most important things the Government must succeed in preventing is young girls being taken out of the country for this dreadful procedure? I would like to hear how that is progressing. Secondly, we have to pay attention to the hundreds, if not thousands, of women here in the UK who have already suffered this terrible procedure and who need the resourcing and help of our NHS in the special units that have been set up to do that. We have to ensure they are properly resourced.

[Lord Hermer (Lab)]

On the increased protection, there is provision already on the statute book, in Section 3A of the Female Genital Mutilation Act, which is about a failure to protect girls under 16. On the civil side, the family court also has a power to impose protection orders that put in place, for example, restrictions on travel and contact with children. Those are both criminal and civil measures, but, to have real effect, they need to be used more frequently—I am convinced of that. On the NHS, I agree; already there is a lot of work that is being done, and it needs to be fully supported. I had the privilege of meeting with the Vavengers, an NGO working in this field, which does fantastic work to promote the importance of healthcare to the victims of these crimes.