Oral Answers to Questions

Kirsteen Sullivan Excerpts

Tuesday 10th November 2026 Commons Chamber

[Rachel Blake (Cities of London and Westminster) (Lab/Co-op)]

12. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle violence against women and girls through the criminal justice system.

[Kirsteen Sullivan (Bathgate and Linlithgow) (Lab/Co-op)]

21. What steps he is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle violence against women and girls through the criminal justice system.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Alex Davies-Jones)]

The Government are taking end-to-end action to transform the justice system’s response to violence against women and girls in a truly cross-Government effort. Our strategy sets out how we will achieve this by preventing these crimes, pursuing perpetrators and supporting victims.

[Alex Davies-Jones]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this very important and timely question. I want to be clear that rape myths and stereotypes have no place in our courts and that victims should never ever feel as though they are the ones on trial. Through our Courts and Tribunals Bill, which is in the other place, we are taking action to stop rape myths from being weaponised in court by ensuring that any previous allegations of rape made by a victim or the fact that they have claimed compensation cannot be unfairly used as evidence in favour of the accused. We are also introducing independent legal advisers for all adult victims of rape and are advancing with our plans for specialist rape and sexual abuse courts for victims.

[Kirsteen Sullivan]

Eighteen months ago a woman in my constituency was assaulted at a local train station, but with limited CCTV footage no charges were brought forward. This trauma was compounded by a lack of victim-centred support from British Transport police, with my constituent left feeling belittled and ignored. As we approach this year’s 16 days of activism against gender-based violence, what discussion is the Minister having with the Department for Transport to ensure that the voices of women and girls are heard and not dismissed?

[Alex Davies-Jones]

My hon. Friend raises a very important point. Victims should be listened to, believed and supported, and the Government are committed to ensuring that every single victim of sexual offending feels heard, supported and able to access the information and specialist support services that they need. As part of our flagship strategy to tackle violence against women and girls, we are committed to preventing these awful crimes, as I have said, and this is a commitment that we are signed up to across Government, including with the Department for Transport. I regularly meet with my counterparts in that Department and others to ensure that the Departments are joined up in our approach to tackle these crimes wherever they exist.