Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether post separation abuse is a prosecutable offence under the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.

Sections 1 and 2 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 included a strengthened definition of domestic abuse which recognises abuse can take place post separation.

Section 1 sets out that the relationship between an individual being abused and the perpetrator is one where they are ‘personally connected’. Section 2 expands what is meant by ‘personally connected’ and is explicit this includes instances where to people “are, or have been” in various forms of relationship, including marriage, civil partnerships, and intimate personal relationships.

The Domestic Abuse Statutory Guidance, issued by the Home Secretary under Section 84 of the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, includes specific references to post-separation abuse, acknowledging “abuse can continue or intensify when a relationship has ended.”