Violence against Women and Girls
03 Jun 2026 · Commons Chamber · 15 speeches · Official record
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I call the Liberal Democrat spokesperson. Full speech
I thank the hon. Gentleman for that question-I know that he is a huge champion on these issues. I was really pleased to secure that £5 million investment to enable victims of domestic abuse in the Crown court to be offered meetings with the prosecution team before a case gets to trial and to have the benefit of dedicated victim liaison officer. We know that attrition rates in these cases are still too high. That is why we are doing everything we can to bring them down. In Wales, for example, a d... Full speech
2. What steps she is taking to help increase prosecution rates for cases involving violence against women and girls. Full speech
Does the Solicitor General agree that public confidence in the justice system and supporting victims is crucial to improving prosecution rates for violence against women and girls? What further actions is she taking with the CPS to reassure victims that sexual offences such as rape and other crimes are robustly prosecuted and treated with the gravity they deserve, and that justice will be delivered for victims? Full speech
I point my hon. Friend to the measures that I have set out, including that enhanced offer for victims of rape and serious sexual violence and the pilot to extend that service to victims of domestic abuse in the Crown courts. It is important that we do everything we can to meet our ambition to halve violence against women and girls within a decade, which is why we have introduced measures such as Raneem’s law, embedding domestic abuse specialists in 999 call centres, and rolled out domestic abuse... Full speech
Order. For future reference, you are meant to refer to MPs by their constituency, not their name, but not to worry. Full speech
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question, and I commend the work of Kaleidoscopic UK in his constituency-I know how hard many organisations are working to tackle these issues. The Government are committed to rolling out child-focused courts nationally in the next three years, and we are investing £17 million to fund the next expansion, but I will happily pass his comments on to my colleagues in the Ministry of Justice who specifically deal with the issue of family courts. Full speech
Recent CPS data shows a welcome reduction in victim attrition in domestic abuse cases where the defendant was charged. However, the same CPS dataset shows little evidence of corresponding improvements in charging rates, timeliness or wider prosecution performance. By what metrics will the Solicitor General measure the success of the recent £5 million investment in CPS pre-trial support for victims of domestic abuse across pilot regions, alongside the CPS’s “Violence Against Women and Girls Strat... Full speech
The CPS has introduced an enhanced service for victims of rape and serious sexual violence. All victims of rape and serious sexual violence are now offered a meeting with the prosecution team before the case gets to trial and are allocated a dedicated victim liaison officer in the CPS to support them through the process. As I said, we are also introducing independent legal advisers. I have secured £5 million of funding to pilot that enhanced service, providing a prosecution team meeting and vict... Full speech
We know that 60% of victims drop out of rape cases before they go to trial. I would appreciate it if the Solicitor General could set out what she is doing to ensure that victims remain central to the work of the Crown Prosecution Service. Full speech
I thank my hon. Friend for her really important question. There have been three successful prosecutions for FGM in this country, but that is not good enough. Last month I hosted the first ever FGM summit, bringing together colleagues across Government to discuss how we can tackle FGM by working not just with the justice system, but with health, education, communities and local government. It is really important that we tackle FGM. It is a form of violence against women and girls, and it must be ... Full speech
Too many abusers are escaping justice in family courts, and my constituents have suffered as a result. Kaleidoscopic UK in my constituency has long called for independent experts to help to spot and advise against the manipulative tactics used by abusers in family courts. When will the Minister commit to implementing independent domestic violence advisers in family courts? Full speech
6. What assessment she has made of the adequacy of levels of Crown Prosecution Service prosecutions of cases involving violence against women and girls. Full speech
I first pay tribute to former Ministers Jess Phillips and Alex Davies-Jones for all their work to tackle violence against women and girls. At the CPS Crown advocacy conference last month, I highlighted the steps being taken to increase the volume of advocates available to prosecute rape. Since the summer of 2024, that group has grown by more than 50%, meaning that more rape cases can be heard and fewer will be vacated or abandoned. The Government have also set aside £6 million over the next two ... Full speech
The first time I met the Prime Minister was when, as Director of Public Prosecutions, he came to Parliament to meet a group of MPs to outline his 10-point plan for tackling female genital mutilation. Since then there have been hundreds of reports of FGM cases but very few prosecutions. What is the Solicitor General doing, whether through prosecutions or a multi-agency approach, to try to rescue young girls from this horrific mutilation? Full speech