Electronic Monitoring of Offenders

Chris Vince Excerpts

Tuesday 27th October 2026 Commons Chamber

[Catherine McKinnell]

The right hon. Gentleman knows as well as I do that that figure is not available, but we could not take this issue more seriously. That is why we have tagging under the domestic abuse perpetrators on licence approach, and probation services have a wider set of powers, many of which I have mentioned, including restrictions on licence conditions to prohibit offenders from driving or attending public events. It is right that we bring in our world-leading restriction zones to ensure that it is the perpetrators, not the victims of domestic violence, who have to alter their lives. We will continue to prioritise and work on this issue, and he is right to raise it.

[Chris Vince (Harlow) (Lab/Co-op)]

I speak regularly to victims of crime and their families in Harlow, and I find some of their stories absolutely heartbreaking. I feel really angry that there are men in our society who think it is okay to treat women in the way they do, and I am sure that people across the House feel the same way. One thing that victims and their families raise with me is their concern about how easy it is for perpetrators—these vile individuals—to take their tags off. What can the Minister say about the punishment that will be handed down to those individuals who tamper with their tags or try to take them off?

[Catherine McKinnell]

I share my hon. Friend’s anger. Since taking on this role, I have felt very angry not just with some of the perpetrators and the cases that we see come across our desks, but with the 14 years of failure that left us in the situation we are in. We are working at pace to improve the technology and the application of the tagging system. [Interruption.] The Conservatives chunter from the Opposition Benches, but they wasted £100 million on tags that did not work. We are working to ensure that this scheme is effective, and we are working at pace to pick up the pieces that were left behind.