Your Policy Update: 16 March 2018 In this briefing: The Government launches a consultation on its proposed Domestic Abuse Bill A debate takes place in the House of Commons on victims' rights Plans to tackle child abuse are set out by the Government Politics A debate was held on victims' rights in the House of Commons on March 13, led by Alex Sobel MP. A number of MPs - including Alex Sobel, Shadow Justice Minister Gloria de Piero and Gavin Newlands MP - quoted from Victim Support's Victim of the System report which found that victims are consistently not receiving their rights under the Victims' Code. Responding to the debate, the Victims' Minister Dr Phillip Lee said: "Victims’ rights must be a practical reality within the justice system, rather than just words on a page. This Government are committed to ensuring that the rights of victims are delivered throughout the criminal justice process ... We are also examining how criminal justice agencies responsible for delivery of entitlements might be better held to account. We are currently considering the legislative and non-legislative routes to delivering effective compliance for victims." Justice questions took place in the House of Commons on 6 March. Questions were asked on a number of subjects including vulnerable witnesses, victims in court, Brexit and legal aid. Victims' Minister Dr Phillip Lee said: "We are committed to improving the experiences of those who have become victims of crime, which is why, by the summer, we will publish our victims strategy, a key aspect of which is how we can improve support for victims as they interact with the criminal justice system". Bolton South East MP Yasmin Qureshi asked an urgent question on Hate Crime in the Commons, in light of inflammatory letters inciting a “Punish a Muslim day”. The Home Office Minister responding said: "This Government take hate crime and Islamophobia extremely seriously, and the UK has a robust legislative framework to respond to it". Domestic abuse The government has launched a consultation on measures to be included in a draft Domestic Abuse (DA) Bill. A number of proposals have been announced, including: A new Domestic Abuse Protection Order will be introduced, allowing courts to impose conditions on abusers, such as compulsory alcohol treatment, the use of electronic tagging or perpetrator programmes Sentence lengths for perpetrators will be increased where the abuse involves or affects a child The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme – or Claire’s Law – will be put into legislation A Domestic Abuse Commissioner will be created Economic abuse will be recognised as a type of DA In December 2017 VS published a report on domestic abuse which set out a number of recommendations. Several of these proposals have been taken up by the government, including: Ensuring that all victims of domestic abuse can access special measures in court, such as giving evidence behind a screen or over video link Strengthening protection orders by making breaches a criminal offence Co-locating IDVA services with the police in certain cases Training for police officers Diana Fawcett, Chief Officer of Victim Support, said: “We welcome the consultation on the draft Domestic Abuse Bill, and the Government’s ambition to ensure domestic abuse is never tolerated and that survivors are safe and supported. We are pleased that survivors will be provided greater protections through a new, stronger protection order and special measures in courts. “We look forward to continue working with survivors, our specialist domestic abuse advocates and the government to ensure that domestic abuse is robustly tackled and that victims get the support and safety that they need.” Victim Support signed a letter following the publication of the Domestic Abuse Bill, alongside Women's Aid and other organisations. The letter stated: "We need to bring domestic abuse out from behind closed doors and make it everybody’s business, from the police, to health professionals, social care and local communities". Children and young people A Sunday Mirror investigation claims that hundreds of young girls were abused in Telford, Shropshire in what the paper describes as Britains' worst ever child grooming scandal. As many as 1,000 girls, some as young as 11, have been affected over 40 years. Telford MP, Lucy Allan, and Barnardo's have called for independent inquiry. The Government has set out plans to improve information sharing between police, social workers and healthcare professionals to tackle child abuse and neglect. The Government has dropped its proposals to introduce mandatory reporting of any concern relating to child abuse by practitioners. The NSPCC reports that is has experienced a 30% rise in helpline contacts about parental drug and alcohol misuse. International Women's Day On International Women's Day (IWD) Victim Support attended an event at Number 10 Downing Street to discuss the Domestic Abuse Bill. To mark IWD, Women's Aid released data showing that refuge workers in England provided shelter to an estimated 13,414 women and their 14,353 children. The Victims' Commissioner, Baroness Newlove, gave a speech in the House of Lords on IWD, saying that "a woman’s place is in the House (of Lords)". Modern slavery Home Office Minister Victoria Atkins gave a speech on modern slavery at a National Crime Agency event at Westminster Abbey. She said: “We need increased support from financial institutions helping us identify and disrupt illicit financial flows which are used to fund and launder the proceeds of modern slavery". There are currently over six hundred active operations involving modern slavery and human trafficking. Knife crime Statistics from the Ministry of Justice show that 20,982 knife crime offences were dealt with by the criminal justice system in 2017, a 9% rise since 2016. The Home Office has announced a round of funding for programmes that tackle knife crime. Violence against women and girls The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has published London's violence against women and girls strategy. On average, 11 women and girls a week are sexually assaulted in each London borough and domestic abuse accounts for 10% of crime reported in the city. The strategy includes a programme to improve safety in public places, programmes to tackle stalking and a call to the government to create a register for perpetrators of domestic abuse. Policing The Police Federation has launched a new campaign to raise awareness of the current state of detective policing in England and Wales. This follows research that found that more than half of detectives said that service cuts have had an impact on their morale. Spring Statement The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Phillip Hammond, presented his Spring Statement to Parliament on 13 March. Calum Macleod, Chair of the Police Federation of England and Wales, responded to the Spring Statement saying that police officers "will be bitterly disappointed that Mr Hammond made no mention whatsoever of additional police funding". Fraud The Royal Mail reports that it has successfully intercepted 3 million fraudulent letters in the UK since November 2016. Feature of the Week VS Homicide Service launches dedicated 24-hour support line Victim Support's National Homicide Service is enhancing its existing service with the introduction of a 24-hour dedicated phone line for family members who wish to access support prior to their introduction to their Homicide Caseworker. The Homicide Service can be reached for free 24 hours a day on 0808 178 1665. Last year the Homicide Service supported more than 1,416 people bereaved by murder and manslaughter in England and Wales. VS Policy Update Editor: Alex Mayes To send us your feedback or for further information on the contents of this briefing please email [email protected] .