Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps she is taking to support survivors of (a) domestic abuse and (b) violence against women through the criminal justice system.

This Government is working towards the ambition of halving violence against women and girls, including domestic abuse, in the next decade.

We are committed to supporting victims of these abhorrent crimes. We have protected VAWG spending by maintaining 2024/25 ringfenced funding levels for sexual violence and domestic abuse support this year, as well as the Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Fund and funding for Independent Domestic and Sexual Violence Advocates.

In November, we launched Domestic Abuse Protection Orders in selected areas. These orders will improve protection for victims of domestic abuse, including non-physical abuse and coercive and controlling behaviour.

Further, we will increase the powers of the Victims’ Commissioner to improve accountability when victims’ needs are not met, and the Victims and Prisoners Act will improve awareness of, and compliance with, the Victims’ Code which supports victims of crime to understand what they can expect from the justice system. It will also require local commissioners to collaborate when commissioning support for victims of domestic and sexual abuse.