(Bridgend) (Con)
I thank the Minister for her response, but what specific
discussions has she had on the recent increase in spikings that
has unfortunately affected women and girls in south Wales?
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home
Department ()
I thank my hon. Friend for raising this issue on behalf of young
women and girls in his constituency. Drink spiking and needle
spiking are horrific and frightening offences, and we are taking
steps, led by the Home Secretary herself, working with Maggie
Blyth, the chief of police leading the response to violence
against women and girls across police forces, to ramp up our
response and tackle them effectively.
(Coventry North West)
(Lab)
The Minister says that spiking is frightening, but it is actually
assault and often leads to further violence. The Government must
look urgently at improving forensic provision in healthcare so
that we can identify the perpetrators and boost public awareness
of the risk of that horrific crime. How will she work with the
Home Office and the Department of Health and Social Care to
tackle the threats of spiking?
The hon. Lady is right to draw attention to the prevalence of
spiking, which is why the Home Secretary is leading on action,
via the Home Office and with other Government colleagues across
the board, to ensure that we have an effective response. I draw
the attention of the hon. Member for Coventry North West () to the specific funding
that the Home Office has put into the safety of women at night
fund, which provides drink spiking detection kits and specific
training for security staff so that women and young girls going
out at night into the night-time economy can feel safe to have a
good time, as we all want them to.
