Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will (a) commission and (b) publish research into domestic abuse against men.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The definition of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) encompasses crimes which disproportionately, but not exclusively, affect women and girls. We recognise that men and boys also experience abusive and violent crimes, such as stalking, domestic abuse and sexual abuse. That is why we fund a specific helpline with Respect, which provides specialist tailored support for male victims of domestic abuse.
On 24 October, the Home Secretary announced a package of reforms to improve the police response to victims of VAWG related crimes. Ensuring that all victims have a positive experience when dealing with the police is essential to increase reporting of these crimes and deliver better outcomes for victims.
Our new VAWG strategy to be published next year aims to help all victims of domestic abuse and this strategy will lay out our plans for any future initiatives and research, including for men who are victims of abuse.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to help tackle domestic abuse against men.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The definition of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) encompasses crimes which disproportionately, but not exclusively, affect women and girls. We recognise that men and boys also experience abusive and violent crimes, such as stalking, domestic abuse and sexual abuse. That is why we fund a specific helpline with Respect, which provides specialist tailored support for male victims of domestic abuse.
On 24 October, the Home Secretary announced a package of reforms to improve the police response to victims of VAWG related crimes. Ensuring that all victims have a positive experience when dealing with the police is essential to increase reporting of these crimes and deliver better outcomes for victims.
Our new VAWG strategy to be published next year aims to help all victims of domestic abuse and this strategy will lay out our plans for any future initiatives and research, including for men who are victims of abuse.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to improve reporting of domestic abuse against men.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The definition of Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) encompasses crimes which disproportionately, but not exclusively, affect women and girls. We recognise that men and boys also experience abusive and violent crimes, such as stalking, domestic abuse and sexual abuse. That is why we fund a specific helpline with Respect, which provides specialist tailored support for male victims of domestic abuse.
On 24 October, the Home Secretary announced a package of reforms to improve the police response to victims of VAWG related crimes. Ensuring that all victims have a positive experience when dealing with the police is essential to increase reporting of these crimes and deliver better outcomes for victims.
Our new VAWG strategy to be published next year aims to help all victims of domestic abuse and this strategy will lay out our plans for any future initiatives and research, including for men who are victims of abuse.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to reduce familial abuse.
Answered by Jess Phillips - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
This Government is committed to tackling domestic and sexual abuse in all its forms. Achieving our aim of halving violence against women and girls in a decade will require a whole systems approach.
The Domestic Abuse Act (2021) recognises children as victims of domestic abuse in their own right when they see, hear or experience the effects of domestic abuse.
We recognise that domestic abuse and sexual violence can take many forms such as from family members in the context of so-called honour-based abuse, or older victims experiencing abuse from their partner or adult children. That is why we fund Hourglass and Karma Nirvana to deliver specialist helplines, which provide tailored support for older victims of domestic abuse and victims of honour-based abuse respectively.
This government also remains firmly committed to tackling all forms of child sexual abuse and working to keep children safe across the country. We are driving forward action right across government, education, children’s social care, health, policing, law enforcement, and working with industry, international and civil society partners to ensure we are all doing all that we can to tackle this horrific crime.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will publish data on the number of deaths of children through (a) murder and (b) manslaughter in England in (i) 2022 and (ii) 2023.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office Homicide Index holds information on the age of victims and whether the offence was initially classified as murder or manslaughter. The data are given in the table.
Table 1: Offences currently recorded as homicide by initial classification of offence for victims aged under 18 years | ||
England, year ending March 2022 to year ending March 2023 | ||
Source: Homicide Index from the Home Office | ||
Initial classification of offence | Apr 2021 to Mar 2022 | Apr 2022 to Mar 2023 |
Murder | 60 | 63 |
Manslaughter | 13 | 5 |
As at 12 December 2023; figures and classification of offence are subject to revision as cases are dealt with by the police and by the courts, or as further information becomes available. | ||
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the activities of hostile states on levels of illegal immigration.
Answered by Angela Eagle - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Government’s first duty is to protect our national security and keep our country safe. We keep potential threats to the UK under constant review and, where necessary, we use all the tools at our disposal to mitigate these threats including at the border and those seeking to enter the UK through irregular means.
As a matter of long-standing policy, we do not comment on the detail of security and intelligence issues.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will introduce measures to help victims of domestic violence retrieve their possessions safely from their ex-partner's properties in circumstances when the police will not intervene.
Answered by Sarah Dines
It is important that police officers recognise and understand domestic abuse in all its forms. Post-separation abuse is an established risk factor for homicide. The College of Policing authorised professional practice guidance is clear that officers should offer assistance to victims intending to recover property from a residence to ensure this process is carried out safely.
Domestic abuse training plays a crucial role in police officers’ understanding and response to domestic abuse. The specialist Domestic Abuse Matters programme developed by the College of Policing and domestic abuse charities, has been delivered to the majority of forces to date. The Government is also now funding the rollout of the training to those forces who have yet to undertake it. It is, however, crucial that police forces continue to remain updated with domestic abuse training, particularly for new officers.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help reduce instances of theft of farm equipment and machinery.
Answered by Chris Philp - Shadow Home Secretary
This Government is committed to driving down rural crime including theft of farm equipment and machinery.
To help prevent the theft of agricultural machinery, the Government has introduced the Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act which will require immobilisers and forensic marking to be fitted as standard to all new All-Terrain Vehicles and quad bikes.
The Equipment Theft (Prevention) Act 2023 gained Royal Assent on 20 July 2023. The Home Office issued a Call for Evidence to inform the necessary secondary legislation regulations, which closed on 13 July and responses are currently being considered.
There are currently no plans to include all agricultural vehicles. However, the provisions could be extended in the future, through secondary legislation, where evidence shows this is necessary.
I also welcome the recent commitment by chief constables across England and Wales, to pursue any available evidence where there is a reasonable chance it could lead them to catching a perpetrator and solving a crime. This relates to all crimes, no matter where they are committed.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether her Department is taking steps to support the police to help reduce the number of cases of (a) children assaulting their parents or guardians due to (i) gaming and (ii) other technology withdrawal disorders and (b) other inter-familial attacks.
Answered by Sarah Dines
Child and adolescent to parent violence and abuse (‘CAPVA’) is a hidden but increasingly recognised form of abuse.
The Home Office have been working to better understand CAPVA, including why it happens and how best to tackle it. As part of our 2021-22 Domestic Abuse Research Fund, we awarded over £1m for various research projects. Included in this were projects that specifically focused on under-researched areas like CAPVA. Over the last three years we have also invested over £41m in increasing the availability of interventions for domestic abuse perpetrators (for example behaviour change programmes) which will also improve our understanding of what works to reduce reoffending. This has included funding projects that specifically work with children and young people displaying these types of behaviours. We recently launched a similar fund worth £36m over the next two years.
More widely, in our cross-government Tackling Domestic Abuse Plan, the Home Office committed to publishing updated guidance for front line practitioners on child to parent abuse. We will seek input from those working in police, health, education and social care to help develop and hone this guidance. The Home Office will also work with stakeholders to reach an agreed definition and terminology for this type of behaviour which will help in identifying and addressing it.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if she will commission research on the impact of (a) conflict, (b) economic exclusion, (c) religious and ethnic persecution, (d) famine and (e) terrorism on migration from the Sahel and sub-Saharan Africa and illegal migration into the UK.
Answered by Robert Jenrick - Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
Migration is a permanent feature of the global economy. It is estimated that there are 281 million international migrants globally, accounting for about 3.6% of the global population. Work remains the major reason people migrate internationally, but UNHCR estimate that 100 million people worldwide are forcibly displaced from their homes. In Sub-Saharan Africa including the Sahel, millions of people have been displaced from their homes due to conflict, human rights violations, violence and natural disasters, exacerbated by climate change; the vast majority remain in or near their country of origin. His Majesty’s Government takes a “whole of route” approach to addressing the challenges of illegal migration, recognising that people’s motivations to move can be complex and inter-related. There are a number of drivers for migration and some of those include illegal migration to the UK or other European countries. While the Home Office does monitor trends, there is no plan to commission any new research at this time.