Hate Crime
Debate between Jess Phillips and Karen Bradley(8 years, 5 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Karen Bradley
The hon. Gentleman makes some very powerful points. I agree with much that has been said. He is right. I am no longer on Twitter because I decided that I just did not want to listen to this kind of nonsense. I will, however, use a spellcheck for the word “tolerate”.
Jess Phillips (Birmingham, Yardley) (Lab)
I welcome the Minister’s statement. I come at this from the point of view of years of the disappointing correlation between those who report and those who receive conviction. I wonder whether the Minister can outline exactly what resources will be given to the Crown Prosecution Service. As it stands, there is no way that all the incidents we are talking about will ever even see the light of day under its current resources and structures. What support will be given to people so they can find their way through the legal systems? At the moment, we are at risk of opening an enormous door to an empty room.
Karen Bradley
The hon. Lady has experienced far more than her share of abuse, particularly online. She is a stalwart for standing up and being there, and for still being on Twitter—I am not quite sure why she is.
I spoke to my hon. and learned Friend the Solicitor General before I made this statement to ensure that he heard exactly that point: that the CPS needs to take this seriously and that we need to see prosecutions and convictions. It is very important that people are punished for those crimes.