Alex Davies-Jones MP: speeches 2024

Speeches

• 5 Nov 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The Government inherited a record and rising court backlog, which has seen far too many victims and survivors waiting too long for justice. Decisions on case listing are a matter for the independent judiciary, who, when possible, look to prioritise cases involving vulnerable victims and witnesses. We are committed to bearing down on the caseload to speed up the delivery of justice for all victims.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Domestic Abuse and Violence against Women · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Lady for that really important question, and I urge everyone in the House to get involved in the 16 days of activism—this year’s theme is “It starts with me”, which I think is a lesson that we should all take on board. The Prison Service assesses the impact of online influences and the need for rehabilitation for convicted terrorists in the first year after their sentencing, but digital citizenship education forms just one part of that rehabilitation. Once we get our prison population under suitable control—following what happened under the previous Government—we will be able to do more of this important work. Offenders convicted of violence against women and girls are also eligible for accredited programmes, although that will depend on their assessed risk and need.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Domestic Abuse and Violence against Women · Hansard source

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  I thank the Liberal Democrat spokesperson for his question. He will know that certain offences are excluded from the SDS40 early release scheme, not the offender. This Government put in strict protections to protect the public, unlike the previous Government, who introduced an end-of-custody supervised licence scheme. Those who are released from sentences for common assault are flagged for domestic abuse markers, and they are given priority for electronic monitoring and risk assessments. I meet the sector regularly to look at what else we can do. We are learning lessons from SDS40, but this Government are committed to halving violence against women and girls.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Domestic Abuse and Violence against Women · Hansard source

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  As the hon. Lady will know, this Government were elected with a landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls over the course of a decade. Every single Department, including the Department for Education, will look at how we tackle misogyny in our schools, streets, homes and workplaces, online, and indeed everywhere. The Opposition have just elected a leader who has made rape jokes previously, but this is about leadership and taking things seriously, and that is exactly what this Government and I are doing. I urge the hon. Lady to write to the Home Office about the specific point that she has made.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Domestic Abuse and Violence against Women · Hansard source

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  We are committed to supporting victims and survivors of these abhorrent crimes, including through the £26 million rape and sexual abuse support fund and the funding of independent domestic and sexual violence advocates. Furthermore, we will increase the powers of the Victims’ Commissioner to improve accountability when victims’ needs are not met.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Domestic Abuse and Violence against Women · Hansard source

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  My hon. Friend has outlined the stark reality of what rape victims and survivors face in our criminal justice system. Not only are far too few cases getting to court, but 60% of rape victims are pulling out of the system, which is why we are committed to introducing independent legal advocates for adult rape victims. We will be working with the judiciary to fast-track RASSO cases through our courts, and support victim-survivors through every step of the criminal justice journey.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Domestic Abuse and Violence against Women · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for her bravery and for speaking out about her experiences as a victim-survivor, which has undoubtedly helped countless others. She is right that this will take every single Department across Government looking into how we stamp out violence against women and girls in our communities and society. She is also right about funding. We are currently looking through the funding we received at the Budget, and in due course I will be able to outline how we will support services. If she would like me to meet her to discuss this further, I shall be happy to do so.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Supporting Victims of Rape and Sexual Violence · Hansard source

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  Again, the right hon. Gentleman forgets who was in power for the last 14 years and who failed to build any prison places. Just 500 extra prison places were built under his Government’s watch. The Government have allocated a record £1.2 billion for prison building in the Budget, and we will be going further. We are the party of law and order. He needs to look at his record.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Supporting Victims of Rape and Sexual Violence · Hansard source

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  As the hon. Lady will know, the Government took steps to exclude the most serious domestic abuse offenders from SDS40, an exemption that was not made under the previous Government’s end-of-custody supervised licence scheme. That was because we know that we need to protect women and girls, and we have a landmark mission to protect women and girls from violence. All the data on releases will be published as usual—the Lord Chancellor has made that clear—but we know that we need to do more.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Supporting Victims of Rape and Sexual Violence · Hansard source

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  We are committed to supporting victims of those abhorrent crimes and have dedicated £26 million to support services through the rape and sexual abuse support fund. We have also announced our plan to introduce free independent legal advocates for the victims and survivors of adult rape and are committed to working with the judiciary to fast-track rape cases through the courts.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Supporting Victims of Rape and Sexual Violence · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for that really important question; he raises some serious points. The Ministry of Justice funds over 60 specialist support services for victims of rape and sexual offending as well as dedicated victim support through the witness service. Court personnel provide support during and after hearings, and we have invested in trauma-informed training to improve the victim experience throughout court. Rape and serious sexual offence victims can also request transcripts of sentencing remarks for free during a one-year pilot. I encourage all those who are eligible please to apply to the pilot.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Supporting Victims of Rape and Sexual Violence · Hansard source

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  Well, I was going to congratulate the right hon. Gentleman on his new role, but he seems to have a very short memory. It is he who should be apologising to the country as a whole on behalf of his Government for their woeful abuse of our justice system and our prisons. Under the previous Government’s ECSL scheme, there were zero exemptions to protect the public. This Government put in serious exemptions to prevent sex offenders and serious violent criminals from being released on to our streets. Maybe he should have a bit of humility.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Support for Victims of Commercial Sexual Exploitation · Hansard source

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  This Government are leading the way with our mission to halve violence against women and girls—all women and girls. The Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 will require local commissioners to develop joint needs assessments for victims of sexual abuse in order to identify and address the current gaps, and to support these women. On outlawing pimping websites specifically, I would encourage my hon. Friend to speak to the Minister for Safeguarding, but as I have previously mentioned, this Government are working holistically across all Government Departments, including the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology and the Home Office, to tackle violence against women and girls.

• 5 Nov 2024 · Support for Victims of Commercial Sexual Exploitation · Hansard source

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  The Ministry of Justice provides funding for vital victim support services to help victims recover from the impact of crime. His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service has developed guidance to support and identify victims of modern slavery and human trafficking, including those who have been sexually exploited.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Courts: Victims’ Experience · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for that important question. Video links are available in all courts to help vulnerable and intimidated witnesses give evidence. We have recently invested £50,000 to transform witness facilities and upgrade video link rooms in 10 Crown courts. Pre-recorded evidence is also available in all Crown courts for eligible victims to spare them the trauma of giving evidence at a live trial.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Courts: Victims’ Experience · Hansard source

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  We know that courtroom availability is essential to dealing with the backlog, and I will pass on that message to the courts Minister—the Minister of State, Ministry of Justice, my hon. Friend the Member for Swindon South (Heidi Alexander).

• 10 Sept 2024 · Courts: Victims’ Experience · Hansard source

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  This Government are committed to improving the victim experience at court. We will work with the judiciary to fast-track rape cases to ensure timely justice for some of the most vulnerable within the criminal justice system. Additionally, this Government committed in our manifesto to introducing free, independent legal support for victims of rape from report to trial. We have also committed to strengthening the victims code and to increasing the Victims’ Commissioner’s powers to make sure that victims’ needs are met.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  The victims code sets out the services and support that victims of crime are entitled to receive from the criminal justice system in England and Wales. That includes the right to access support, which applies regardless of whether they decide to report the crime to the police. I would be delighted to meet my hon. Friend to discuss this further.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I thank my hon. Friend for that question. I recognise the vital work that Survive in York does to support victims and survivors in her area. I fully appreciate the importance of notifying police and crime commissioners and providers about future funding as early as possible to effectively commission, plan and deliver those services. As I have indicated, it would be wrong of me to pre-empt the current spending review. We know that current providers are concerned about the cliff edge in March 2025. I fully appreciate that and I would be delighted to meet her to discuss that further.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  As I have stated, this Government were elected with a landmark mission to halve violence against women and girls within a decade. To do so, we must improve the justice system’s response to these crimes, including domestic abuse. We must relentlessly target the most prolific and harmful perpetrators, better support victims and survivors, and ensure timely and effective justice. We will put domestic abuse experts in 999 control rooms and strengthen the use of protection orders, and we will strengthen the tools available to manage domestic abuse offenders.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  I concur: there is an excellent report from the Committee, to which the Government will respond in due course. I am well aware of some of the issues with the coroners and reporting deaths for bereaved families and I should be delighted to discuss them further with my hon. Friend.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Topical Questions · Hansard source

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  First, let me congratulate my hon. Friend on succeeding me as chair of the all-party parliamentary group on perpetrators of domestic abuse. It is a vital APPG and I know that she will do sterling working as its chair. To confirm, we have excluded from SDS40 certain offences that are frequently connected to domestic abuse, such as stalking and controlling or coercive behaviour. The victim contact scheme is available to all victims of a sexual, violent or terrorist offence where the offender is sentenced to 12 months or more in custody. We are working with the sector and others to consider how to improve communication with victims about an offender following a conviction.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Rape and Sexual Violence: Victim Support · Hansard source

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  I thank the hon. Member for his question. He will know that this Government have a mission to tackle violence against women and girls. As I have said, that vision pulls together Departments across Whitehall, including the Department for Education—I recently had a meeting with an Education Minister to discuss exactly that issue. I have been clear that sex with anyone who cannot consent is a crime, and we are working across Government to tackle it.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Rape and Sexual Violence: Victim Support · Hansard source

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  As the Lord Chancellor has previously said, we cannot give exact figures for specific areas. However, we are working with other Departments, including the MHCLG, and with local authorities to ensure that those who are being released from prison today under SDS40 have the accommodation that they need. The Probation Service has been working around the clock to ensure that.

• 10 Sept 2024 · Rape and Sexual Violence: Victim Support · Hansard source

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  The case in France is truly shocking, and we have all looked on in horror as the details have unfolded. I commend the victim for her bravery in coming forward and making it public so that we can see the full aspects of the trial. Spiking is a despicable crime. We have committed to introduce a new criminal offence of spiking and we are considering how best to implement it. To be clear, in England and Wales, having sex with a person who cannot consent is rape, and spiking with intent to engage in sexual activity is a specific offence, with a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.