Karl Turner
Main Page: Karl Turner (Labour - Kingston upon Hull East)Department Debates - View all Karl Turner's debates with the Cabinet Office
(14 years, 4 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
The Attorney-General
It will be for Government members who are introducing the policy to decide whether that matter should be subject to a free vote or not.
Karl Turner (Kingston upon Hull East) (Lab)
8. What recent representations the Crown Prosecution Service has received on steps to increase the rate of prosecution in cases of domestic violence.
The Solicitor-General
Again, I congratulate the hon. Gentleman on his election to the House. Records of representations received by local CPS offices are not kept centrally. I can tell him, however, that the Director of Public Prosecutions has not received any recent representations on steps to increase the rate of prosecutions in cases of domestic violence.
Karl Turner
May I ask the Solicitor-General what he proposes to do to build on the success of the Labour Government in tackling domestic violence?
The Solicitor-General
That is a wide question that I do not have time to answer, except in an Adjournment debate. As I said in my answers to the hon. Gentleman’s hon. Friends at the beginning of Question Time, the Government take domestic violence every bit as seriously as the previous Government. It is worth noting, however, that the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 included a power to introduce restraining orders. Until I reminded the then Government during the course of debates on the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 of those powers, they did nothing about introducing restraining orders for four or five years. Their record was therefore rather patchy.