Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment her Department has made of the extent to which perpetrators of domestic abuse use pets as a form of coercion and control; and if she will include guidance on that issue in the Domestic Abuse Bill.

Domestic abuse can encompass a wide range of behaviours and can affect all parts of a victim’s life and relationships, including those with pets.

The Domestic Abuse Bill will help to better protect and support the victims of all forms of domestic abuse, including coercive control, and help bring perpetrators to justice.

We have published draft statutory guidance to accompany the legislation and to provide explanation of the different characteristics of domestic abuse, which includes reference to how pets may be used by perpetrators.