Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of considering the charge of stalking together with that of stalking with intent to ensure that cases can be brought within the six-month time limit.

Tackling violence against women and girls (VAWG) is a top priority for this Government and the VAWG Strategy published on 18 December sets out clear action to tackle stalking as a part of this.

We have appointed Richard Wright KC to lead a review of the stalking legislation. The review will consider whether the criminal law on stalking needs to change to ensure the police and wider criminal justice partners have the clearest possible framework for effective identification, management and prosecution of stalking cases. The scope of the review includes the stalking offences in the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 and, due to their intertwined nature, the harassment offences in the same Act. As part of this, the review will also consider the classification of stalking offences as either-way or summary-only and this includes consideration of the statutory time limits involved. The review will recommend options for reform where appropriate.

The full review, including any recommendations, must be submitted to the Secretary of State by the end of March 2026.