Question to the Home Office:

To ask His Majesty's Government when they plan to publish their response to the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s report Safety before status: the solutions, which was due in February.

Tackling violence against women and girls is a government priority. We are committed to supporting victims of abuse, regardless of their immigration status.

The Home Office is grateful to the Domestic Abuse Commissioner for publishing the ‘Safety Before Status: The Solutions’ report and to the Commissioner’s team and external partners for researching the vital issue of support for migrant victims and survivors of domestic abuse.

We will continue to engage with the Commissioner’s office on recommendations set out in the report, and across government. We have already begun to take forward work that stems from some of the recommendations.

We are giving detailed consideration to the findings of this research in conjunction with the external evaluation of the Home Office funded Support for Migrant Victims Scheme pilot (SMV) and considering the wider policies affecting migrant victims and survivors of domestic abuse. Our official response will be published as soon as is practicable. In the meantime, we continue to provide £1.4 million per annum to fund support for all migrant victims of domestic abuse.