Domestic Abuse

Lord McFall of Alcluith Excerpts

Wednesday 29th April 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

Again, I did not hear the noble Baroness very well, but I heard her better than the first time—

[The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)]

If the Minister would promise to write on that question, we will move on, to get everybody in.

[Baroness Finlay of Llandaff (CB)]

My Lords, I declare that I am chairing an inquiry into alcohol harms. When will the data on alcohol-fuelled domestic violence during lockdown be made available and collated with sales, given that over half of intimate partner and almost all family homicides in 2014-15 involved alcohol and that the latest research shows that alcohol-fuelled violence is disproportionately clustered in the lowest socioeconomic groups—the people living in particularly difficult situations?

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[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

The Government are doing several things. In terms of adults, the #YouAreNotAlone campaign that the Home Secretary released is certainly up and running; I do not know whether the right reverend Prelate has seen it. Adults can access that and there have been a number of online support services for children, so that they have a line into help and support. Going back to the point of the noble Lord, Lord Kennedy, there is also support for children who are victims of sexual abuse online during lockdown.

[The Senior Deputy Speaker]

Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top? No? We will move on to the noble Lord, Lord Blencathra.

[Lord Blencathra (Con)]

My Lords, I thank my noble friend for all the excellent work she has been doing to tackle this long-standing and difficult problem, which has been greatly exacerbated by the current quarantine situation. Just how prepared were the Government and police in identifying and dealing with domestic abuse and violence during this pandemic, and what measures did they put in place in preparation for it?

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[Baroness Williams of Trafford]

The Government, particularly the Home Office, are getting more and more evidence of financial abuse, particularly among older people. Economic abuse is now seen as a form of domestic abuse, so the noble Baroness is absolutely right. There is not only economic abuse of the elderly; as was raised with me in a Question last week, older people are more subject to scams.

[The Senior Deputy Speaker]

I have added a few minutes as a result of the connectivity and audio issues. We will go back to the noble Baroness, Lady Armstrong of Hill Top, if she is still here. No?

The time allowed for this Question has elapsed. The Virtual Proceedings will now adjourn until 1 pm for a Statement.