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.

This Government is committed to tackling domestic abuse in all its forms as part of our unprecedented mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade. We have already announced a series of bold measures designed to strengthen the police response to domestic abuse, protect victims and hold perpetrators to account.

In February, under a new approach named 'Raneem's Law', the first domestic abuse specialists were embedded in 999 control rooms in five police forces to advise on risk assessments, work with officers on the ground and ensure that victims are referred to appropriate support services swiftly.

To further strengthen protections for victims, in November 2024 we launched new Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPOs) in selected police forces and courts - which is a huge step towards a new national approach. On 5 March, we expanded the use of DAPOs to Cleveland and we plan to onboard North Wales in the coming months - offering access to these new orders to a greater number of victims. The new DAPO brings together the strongest element of the existing protective order regime into a single comprehensive, flexible order.

On 28 November 2024, the Government announced a funding increase of £30 million, meaning a total investment of £160 million in the Domestic Abuse Safe Accommodation Grant in 2025-26. This will enable local authorities to invest in essential support in frontline safe accommodation services.

We are determined to deliver a cross-Government transformative approach to halving violence against women and girls, underpinned by a new VAWG strategy to be published this year.