Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to prevent individuals subject to active civil court orders from receiving Legal Aid.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Anyone can receive civil legal aid, provided that their case is in scope of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) and they pass the applicable means and merits tests, along with any necessary evidence requirements.
Criminal legal aid may be granted to defendants in criminal cases if they pass the applicable means and merits (interests of justice) tests. It is an accepted principle under both domestic law and international human rights agreements, as a component of the right to a fair trial, that those charged with a criminal offence have the right to legal assistance if needed.
It is possible for individuals subject to active civil court orders to claim legal aid; the legal aid framework does not prevent this. To receive legal aid, the matter must fall within the scope of the legal aid scheme, and the applicant must pass both the means and merits tests. The tests only apply to the case for which legal aid is sought, assessing financial eligibility and merits eligibility including, in relation to domestic violence cases, prospects of success and proportionality. An individual being subject to an unrelated active civil court order would not impact that assessment.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to address the funding anomaly whereby Legal Aid funding may be granted to alleged or confirmed perpetrators rather than judicially recognised victims.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Anyone can receive civil legal aid, provided that their case is in scope of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) and they pass the applicable means and merits tests, along with any necessary evidence requirements.
Criminal legal aid may be granted to defendants in criminal cases if they pass the applicable means and merits (interests of justice) tests. It is an accepted principle under both domestic law and international human rights agreements, as a component of the right to a fair trial, that those charged with a criminal offence have the right to legal assistance if needed.
It is possible for individuals subject to active civil court orders to claim legal aid; the legal aid framework does not prevent this. To receive legal aid, the matter must fall within the scope of the legal aid scheme, and the applicant must pass both the means and merits tests. The tests only apply to the case for which legal aid is sought, assessing financial eligibility and merits eligibility including, in relation to domestic violence cases, prospects of success and proportionality. An individual being subject to an unrelated active civil court order would not impact that assessment.
Asked by: Zöe Franklin (Liberal Democrat - Guildford)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what safeguards are in place to ensure that Legal Aid awarded under the LASPO Schedule 1 pathway is provided solely to individuals who have been judicially recognised as victims.
Answered by Sarah Sackman - Minister of State (Ministry of Justice)
Anyone can receive civil legal aid, provided that their case is in scope of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) and they pass the applicable means and merits tests, along with any necessary evidence requirements.
Criminal legal aid may be granted to defendants in criminal cases if they pass the applicable means and merits (interests of justice) tests. It is an accepted principle under both domestic law and international human rights agreements, as a component of the right to a fair trial, that those charged with a criminal offence have the right to legal assistance if needed.
It is possible for individuals subject to active civil court orders to claim legal aid; the legal aid framework does not prevent this. To receive legal aid, the matter must fall within the scope of the legal aid scheme, and the applicant must pass both the means and merits tests. The tests only apply to the case for which legal aid is sought, assessing financial eligibility and merits eligibility including, in relation to domestic violence cases, prospects of success and proportionality. An individual being subject to an unrelated active civil court order would not impact that assessment.
Asked by: Ben Obese-Jecty (Conservative - Huntingdon)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to page 12 of the Police reform white paper entitled From Local to National: A New Model for Policing” (CP1489), what plans she has to bring forward legislative proposals for vetting standards to allow police forces to retrospectively suspend police officers under investigation for (a) domestic abuse and (b) sexual offences.
Answered by Sarah Jones - Minister of State (Home Office)
The recently published police reform White Paper sets out the Government’s plans to further strengthen the police vetting and misconduct systems
These reforms will, for the first time, place police vetting standards into legislation. These new regulations will include robust measures which will enable forces to exclude individuals from policing who have a caution or conviction for relevant violence against women and girls offences, and will be subject to consultation with the Police Advisory Board for England and Wales (PABEW)
Police forces have existing powers to suspend police officers who are subject to an allegation, but must first consider temporary redeployment to alternative duties or location. We will therefore strengthen these arrangements, placing greater requirements on police forces to suspend officers who are under investigation for crimes such as domestic abuse or sexual offences.
Subject to the statutory consultation process, we intend to make these changes this summer.
Asked by: Baroness Smith of Llanfaes (Plaid Cymru - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, with regard to Freedom from violence and abuse volume 2: action plan, published on 18 December 2025, what actions they have taken, or plan to take, to deliver the commitment to working with employers on domestic abuse.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
‘Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy to build a safer society for women and girls’, published on 18 December 2025, sets out our commitment to improving the employer response to violence against women and girls (VAWG). Work is underway to encourage employers to maximise employment opportunities and provide support for those experiencing domestic abuse in the workplace. This includes:
We are working across government to deliver commitments on employers’ response to domestic abuse, including through a cross-government Ministerial Group that has shaped the development of the Strategy and will oversee its implementation.
This is further supported by a Strategy Advisory Board of external expert stakeholders who will help to hold the Government to account on delivery.
Asked by: Baroness Owen of Alderley Edge (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support is in place to help recover the credit score of victims of domestic abuse when their credit score has been impacted by an abusive partner.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government recognises the devastating impact economic abuse can have on victims, even long after a relationship ends. ‘Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy to build a safer society for women and girls’, published on 18 December 2025, outlined a package of commitments to tackle economic abuse.
This included a commitment from His Majesty’s Treasury (HMT) to work with Credit Reference Agencies, lenders and the third sector to improve the way coerced debt is reflected on victim-survivors’ credit files with the aim of making it easier for them to access financial products in the future. This commitment was also included in HMT’s recent Financial Inclusion Strategy which considered economic abuse as a key theme, in recognition of the particular challenges victim-survivors can face in accessing financial products and services.
Asked by: Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrat - Mid Sussex)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if her Department will provide a guarantee that any changes to settlement rules will not have an adverse impact on families that are on the five-year pathway to remain.
Answered by Mike Tapp - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Home Office)
The earned settlement model, proposed in A Fairer Pathway to Settlement, is currently subject to a public consultation, running until 12 February 2026.
The consultation seeks views on whether there should be transitional arrangements for those already on a pathway to settlement.
We will continue to offer a shorter pathway to settlement for non-UK dependants of British citizens, on the family route, to five years, provided they have remained compliant with their requirements, and we will retain existing safeguards to protect the vulnerable, including settlement rights for victims of domestic violence and abuse.
I do not want to prejudge the outcome of the consultation, so there is no further detail I can give at this time.
The government’s response to the consultation will be subject to an economic and equality impact assessment, which we have committed to publish in due course.
Asked by: Paul Kohler (Liberal Democrat - Wimbledon)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of trends in the number of convictions for violence against women and girls in England and Wales in the last 12 months.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
Violence against women and girls constitutes a number of offences. The Ministry of Justice routinely publishes data on convictions for a number of offences including offences related to violence against women and girls in the Outcomes by Offence data tool. This can be downloaded from the Criminal Justice Statistics landing page here: Criminal Justice Statistics.
The Government cannot and does not seek to influence convictions or judicial outcomes, which are rightly matters for the independent judiciary. However, as part of our mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, we recognise it is vital for victims to feel able to come forward and obtain the justice they deserve.
In December, we published our ‘Freedom from violence and abuse: a cross-government strategy’, which sets out the actions we are taking to achieve our VAWG mission. To support victims to come forward and feel able to stay engaged throughout the justice process, our strategy sets out a comprehensive package of measures to strengthen support at every stage of the criminal justice system. This includes court measures to protect victims from intrusive cross-examination, stronger perpetrator management through a national rollout of Domestic Abuse Protection Orders, and the largest-ever investment of £550 million into victim support services over the next three years.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment has been made of the potential merits of increasing funding for support services available to families navigating family court proceedings in cases involving domestic abuse.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
This Government recognises the significant impact of domestic abuse on children and adult victims involved in family court proceedings, which is why we are committed to reforms that improve multi-agency working and provide better support.
Central to these reforms is the expansion of the Pathfinder model which seeks to improve outcomes for children and families involved in private family law proceedings, including those who have experienced domestic abuse. The voice of the child is amplified through a Child Impact Report which assesses the child’s experiences and needs, ensuring these are heard and communicated to the court.
Under the Pathfinder model, victims of domestic abuse are also offered specialist support from an Independent Domestic Violence Adviser. The model currently operates in 10 court areas, backed by £13 million investment in the current financial year.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps are being taken to ensure that support provided to children involved in family court cases is (a) child-centred and (b) informed by their lived experience of domestic abuse.
Answered by Alex Davies-Jones - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Justice)
This Government recognises the significant impact of domestic abuse on children and adult victims involved in family court proceedings, which is why we are committed to reforms that improve multi-agency working and provide better support.
Central to these reforms is the expansion of the Pathfinder model which seeks to improve outcomes for children and families involved in private family law proceedings, including those who have experienced domestic abuse. The voice of the child is amplified through a Child Impact Report which assesses the child’s experiences and needs, ensuring these are heard and communicated to the court.
Under the Pathfinder model, victims of domestic abuse are also offered specialist support from an Independent Domestic Violence Adviser. The model currently operates in 10 court areas, backed by £13 million investment in the current financial year.