A new Domestic Abuse Register would be created by a Labour
government to track offenders and help protect victims, the party
has announced today (Sunday 25 September).
Similar to the existing Violent and Sex Offender Register, the
new index would mean those convicted of serial domestic abuse and
stalking must give personal information to the police and notify
of any change in circumstances.
Offenders often have multiple victims and their abuse is not
visible to others, meaning patterns of behaviour can go
undetected and further crimes are committed.
The register would allow for better police and law enforcement
monitoring of perpetrators and help to identify offending
patterns more quickly.
Labour would also introduce a new crime category for serial
domestic abusers and stalkers. This would ensure that judges have
powers to put offenders on the register, allowing them to be
monitored under Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements
(MAPPA) – where the police, probation and prison services work
together with other agencies to manage offenders and protect the
public from harm.
The new measures are part of Labour’s wider strategy to tackle
violence against women and girls and put victims first – with a
commitment to increase minimum jail terms for rapists,
fast-tracking rape and sexual violence cases, and providing
survivor support packages for victims.
, Labour’s Shadow Justice
Secretary, said:
“Under the Conservatives, criminals are repeatedly let off while
victims are being let down.
“Labour will get a grip of the Tories’ failure to tackle the
epidemic of violence against women and girls – with improved
monitoring of domestic abuse perpetrators, longer jail terms for
rapists, and more rights for victims.
“It’s time to put those suffering at the hands of offenders
first.”
The scale of domestic abuse has deepened in the last year, as the
number of offences recorded by the police in England and Wales
increased by nearly 10% to 909,504 incidents in the year to April
2022.
The number of stalking and harassment offences have also
increased year on year since March 2014, rising by 15% in the
year to March 2022 alone.
The announcement of the Domestic Abuse Register follows news that
Labour will introduce specialist courts for rape cases to speed
up justice and provide dedicated support to victims.
Under the plans, the party will use existing space at every crown
court location in England and Wales to establish a specialist
courtroom for dealing with rape trials. Labour will also make
changes to the way trials are listed by working with the judges
to get rape cases listed as a priority.
ENDS
Notes to editors:
1. Statistics on domestic abuse in England and Wales
(table F13a and 13b):
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/datasets/crimeinenglandandwalesotherrelatedtables
2. Statistics on stalking in England and Wales:
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/crimeandjustice/bulletins/crimeinenglandandwales/yearendingmarch2022
3. Labour will introduce a Victims’ Law to put victim
rights into statute, after the Conservative government promised a
bill in three manifestoes, but has yet to deliver: https://labour.org.uk/press/labour-frontbench-and-pcc-candidates-write-to-conservatives-demanding-they-back-labours-victims-law/
4. Labour will install police hubs integrated into
local communities and neighbourhood prevention teams to crack
down on community crime: https://labour.org.uk/press/labour-to-restore-neighbourhood-policing-to-fight-epidemic-of-anti-social-behaviour-under-the-conservatives/
