Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the proportion of people convicted of assault in a domestic context who were charged with the offence of common assault under Section 39 of the Criminal Justice Act 1988 in the latest period for which data is available.
Answered by Gareth Bacon - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
The Ministry of Justice does not hold the data requested. Offences involving domestic abuse can take various forms and are prosecuted under the offence in law that best reflects their nature and circumstances, for example, assault or harassment. These offences can take the form of domestic abuse or non-domestic abuse and data collected from courts does not distinguish between the two.
This Government continues to take concerted action to pursue perpetrators of domestic abuse. We have:
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to enable the use of polygraph tests by probation officers in the management of serious offenders.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
The Probation Service has used polygraph testing for high risk sex offenders since 2014 and for terrorist offenders since 2021. In July 2021, the Ministry of Justice commenced a three-year pilot of polygraph testing with high risk domestic abuse perpetrators.
We will close three operational gaps in the use of polygraph through the Criminal Justice Bill.
Currently, certain offenders convicted of murder cannot be polygraph tested on licence even if they have also been convicted of a serious sexual offence, where the sentence for the sexual offence has expired before they are released on licence. The Bill will permit polygraph testing with those offenders convicted of murder who are assessed as posing a risk of sexual offending on release.
It will also make sure that an offender sentenced concurrently for a sexual and a non-sexual offence, where the sexual offence expires before or during the licence period of the non-sexual offence, can be polygraph tested throughout their entire licence period.
Finally, the Bill also extends polygraph testing to a cohort of serious offenders who committed a non-terrorism offence, such as conspiracy to murder, as an act of terrorism or for the purposes of terrorism but did so before the relevant legislation came into force, which enables the Court at the point of sentencing to make a formal ‘terrorist connection’ determination.
Asked by: Ruth Cadbury (Labour - Brentford and Isleworth)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the adequacy of the existing legislation to tackle online impersonations for the purpose of coercive control on (a) social media and (b) dating applications.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
We know that perpetrators can use technology to coerce and control victims of domestic abuse. Coercive and Controlling Behaviour legislation may apply if the victim and perpetrator are personally connected and if the behaviour takes place repeatedly or continuously. On 5 April 2023, we extended the offence to remove the co-habitation requirement, so it applies regardless of whether the victim and perpetrator live together.
The landmark Online Safety Bill, which is currently undergoing its passage through the House of Lords, will strengthen users’ protection from coercive control online. All companies that host user-generated content or allow users to interact with one another and search services are in scope of the Online Safety Bill, including social media and online dating platforms.
To ensure that individuals who are a victim of controlling or coercive behaviour (CCB) perpetrated using technology are adequately protected, we have added CCB to the list of priority offences in the Bill. This highlights this form of abuse as one of the most serious and prevalent types of illegal content and activity online, which companies must take proactive measures to tackle.
Finally, through the Online Safety Bill, users will be better able to report abuse, including abuse perpetrated via online impersonations, and they should expect to receive an appropriate response from the platform. This will act against criminals using the internet as a weapon with which to threaten and control individuals online.
Asked by: Alex Davies-Jones (Labour - Pontypridd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of polygraph testing in high-risk domestic abuse cases.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Prior to polygraph testing being rolled out across the Probation Service in 2014, an evaluation of its effectiveness with high-risk sex offenders on licence was undertaken and a report published in 2012. The report is publicly available here: The evaluation of the mandatory polygraph pilot (publishing.service.gov.uk).
In July 2021 the Ministry of Justice commenced a three-year pilot of polygraph examinations with high-risk domestic abuse perpetrators on licence. The aim of the pilot is to evaluate the efficacy of polygraph in managing high-risk domestic abuse perpetrators using a randomised control trial which is being independently evaluated by the Cambridge Centre for Evidence Based Policing. The pilot also includes a process evaluation and, as part of that, we will seek the views of external stakeholders, including victim and survivor groups, about the use of polygraph testing with this group.
At the end of the pilot, the evaluation report will be laid before both Houses and will be used to make a decision whether to roll it out across probation nationally. Once the evaluation has been completed it will be published on gov.uk.
Due to it currently being piloted, the polygraph policy framework does not currently cover testing of domestic abuse perpetrators. However, the policy sets out the general requirements for how probation practitioners must liaise with partner agencies when a sex offender or terrorist offender is subject to polygraph testing. They are required to inform relevant partner agencies that someone has a polygraph testing condition on their licence and of the outcomes of any tests which take place, including any significant disclosures the person makes. The polygraph policy framework is publicly available here: Polygraph examination policy framework - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Alex Davies-Jones (Labour - Pontypridd)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of sharing the results of polygraph testing in high-risk domestic abuse cases with (a) multi-agency partners and (b) specialist services to inform risk assessment and safety planning.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Prior to polygraph testing being rolled out across the Probation Service in 2014, an evaluation of its effectiveness with high-risk sex offenders on licence was undertaken and a report published in 2012. The report is publicly available here: The evaluation of the mandatory polygraph pilot (publishing.service.gov.uk).
In July 2021 the Ministry of Justice commenced a three-year pilot of polygraph examinations with high-risk domestic abuse perpetrators on licence. The aim of the pilot is to evaluate the efficacy of polygraph in managing high-risk domestic abuse perpetrators using a randomised control trial which is being independently evaluated by the Cambridge Centre for Evidence Based Policing. The pilot also includes a process evaluation and, as part of that, we will seek the views of external stakeholders, including victim and survivor groups, about the use of polygraph testing with this group.
At the end of the pilot, the evaluation report will be laid before both Houses and will be used to make a decision whether to roll it out across probation nationally. Once the evaluation has been completed it will be published on gov.uk.
Due to it currently being piloted, the polygraph policy framework does not currently cover testing of domestic abuse perpetrators. However, the policy sets out the general requirements for how probation practitioners must liaise with partner agencies when a sex offender or terrorist offender is subject to polygraph testing. They are required to inform relevant partner agencies that someone has a polygraph testing condition on their licence and of the outcomes of any tests which take place, including any significant disclosures the person makes. The polygraph policy framework is publicly available here: Polygraph examination policy framework - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps police forces are taking to monitor breaches of exclusion zones relating to (a) domestic abuse and (b) other violent crimes.
Answered by Sarah Dines
This Government is committed to protecting all victims and tackling domestic abuse and violent crime.
To gain protection from domestic abuse, police can apply for a Domestic Violence Protection Order, victims can apply for a Non-Molestation Order and criminal courts can impose a Restraining Order on acquittal or conviction of a criminal offence. In cases of violent crime, police forces can apply to the court for a Criminal Behaviour Order, Gang Injunction, or Knife Crime Prevention Order which can also impose exclusion zones. Additionally, in community sentences, the court can impose electronically monitored exclusion zones. Responding to breaches is an operational matter for the police to decide upon.
The introduction of the new Domestic Abuse Protection Notice and Order, will help to strengthen the evidence base for pursuing and prosecuting breach of an exclusion zone in cases of domestic abuse. The new order will be piloted from next year in Gwent, Greater Manchester, the London Boroughs of Croydon, Sutton, and Bromley, and the British Transport Police (Domestic abusers face crackdown in raft of new measures - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)).
For offenders on licence, breach of exclusion zones could result in recall by probation and arrest and return to custody by the police. Later this year, the Ministry of Justice will begin a project to test the effectiveness of electronic monitoring of additional licence conditions, including exclusion zones, for domestic abuse perpetrators released on licence.
Asked by: Julian Knight (Independent - Solihull)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to Government grants statistics 2020 to 2021, published 31 March 2022, what assessment her Department has made of the effectiveness of the Perpetrator Workforce Development and Consultancy Grant.
Answered by Chris Philp - Minister of State (Home Office)
We believe this question relates to statistics from 2021 to 2022, published in March 2023.
We awarded SafeLives £87,247.00 and Respect £177,284.00 to develop the skills and scale of the domestic abuse perpetrator workforce to safely meet growing demand for, and provision of services.
This work provided tailored strategic support and aided the development of local strategic plans for responding to perpetrators, sharing learning and guidance for commissioners.
It also provided a programme of workforce development training and content for courses to futureproof the workforce.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what measures his Department has put in place to monitor perpetrators of domestic abuse when they are released on licence.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
HMPPS have taken significant steps to strengthen practice in managing domestic abuse offenders– introducing a new Policy Framework to make expectations clear, updating training and strengthening operational guidance: Domestic abuse policy framework - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
The Probation Service works with other agencies to manage the risks perpetrators pose on release from prison and to ensure the safety and wellbeing of victims, potential victims, and children. For domestic abuse offenders convicted of relevant sexual or violent offences and others referred based on their risk, this will be under Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA). The statutory MAPPA Guidance now includes a specific chapter on domestic abuse: Multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPA): Guidance - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).
We are investing an extra £5.5 million a year to recruit probation staff who are specifically responsible for obtaining domestic abuse information held by the police, as well as children’s safeguarding information held by councils.
We are making better use of technology to enhance monitoring of domestic abuse offenders:
Asked by: Henry Smith (Conservative - Crawley)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding her Department provided to the (a) Refuge National Domestic Abuse Helpline, (b) National Perpetrator Helpline run by Respect, (c) Men’s Advice Line, (d) Galop national LGBT+ victims' helpline, (e) National Stalking Helpline operated by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust and (f) Revenge Porn Helpline operated by SWGfL in the (i) 2022-23 and (ii) 2023-24 financial years.
Answered by Sarah Dines
The Home Office has provided over £3.7m of funding to the following helplines to provide advice and support to victims of domestic abuse, perpetrators of domestic abuse as well as victims of stalking since financial year 2022/23.
The breakdown of allocation by financial year is as follows:
Financial Year 2022/2023
(a) National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge - £1,000,000
(b) National Perpetrator Helpline, run by Respect - £200,000
(c) Men’s Advice Line, run by Respect - £200,000
(d) National LGBT+ Victims' Helpline, run by Galop - £150,000
(e) National Stalking Helpline operated by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust - £150,000
(f) Revenge Porn Helpline operated by South West Grid for London - £160,430
Financial Year 2023/2024
(a) National Domestic Abuse Helpline, run by Refuge - £1,000,000
(b) National Perpetrator Helpline, run by Respect - £200,000
(c) Men’s Advice Line, run by Respect - £200,000
(d) National LGBT+ Victims' Helpline, run by Galop - £150,000
(e) National Stalking Helpline operated by the Suzy Lamplugh Trust - £150,000
(f) Revenge Porn Helpline operated by South West Grid for London - £160,430
In March 2022, we published the cross-Government Tackling Domestic Abuse Plan. The Plan will seek to transform the whole of society’s response in order to prevent offending, support victims and pursue perpetrators, as well as to strengthen the systems processes in place needed to deliver these goals.
As part of the investment of over £140 million for supporting victims and survivors in the Tackling Domestic Abuse Plan, and over £81 million for tackling perpetrators, the Home Office committed to double funding for National Domestic Abuse Helpline, and further increase funding for all the national helplines it supports.
Asked by: Matthew Offord (Conservative - Hendon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the report prepared for the Home Office by Analytics Cambridge and QE Assessments Ltd entitled Domestic Homicide Reviews: Quantitative Analysis of Domestic Homicide Reviews October 2020 – September 2021, published in June 2022, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the severity of punishments for domestic homicide.
Answered by Edward Argar - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
In March 2023 this government published the independent Domestic Homicide Sentencing Review and announced that we will be changing the law so that sentencing reflects the severity of these crimes. We will introduce statutory aggravating factors to increase sentences for murderers with a history of controlling or coercive behaviour against the victim, and for murders involving ‘overkill’ which is the use of excessive or gratuitous violence beyond that necessary to kill. Building on our ban of the ‘rough sex defence’ in the Domestic Abuse Act 2021, we also want to see longer sentences for perpetrators of so-called rough sex manslaughter and have requested that the Sentencing Council update their guidelines so that the courts can impose a higher sentence in these circumstances.
The Review makes a number of other recommendations which we are carefully considering, and our full response will be published before summer recess.
The Home Office commission the 'Quantitative Analysis of Domestic Homicide Reviews’ (DHR) reports by QE Assessments Ltd to share learning and insights from the DHR process. The cases reviewed in the QE Assessments report are likely to also feature in the cases reviewed by Clare Wade KC in the Domestic Homicide Sentencing Review.