UK
Labour vows register to tackle ‘epidemic of violence against women and girls’
Perpetrators of domestic violence would be made to sign a register to monitor their behaviour in the same way as sex offenders under Labour plans.
Shadow justice secretary Steve Reed said the plan would help tackle an “epidemic of violence” against women and girls.
The domestic abuse register would mean those convicted of serial offences and stalking must give personal information to the police and notify of any change in circumstances.
The register would allow for better police and law enforcement monitoring of perpetrators and help to identify offending patterns more quickly.
Mr Reed 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.”
Labour pointed to figures showing domestic violence 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 also increased year on year since March 2014, rising by 15% in the year to March 2022 alone.
Rape trials
Justice is currently an issue reserved to Westminster, with Wales and England sharing a justice system – although Welsh Labour has called for justice to be devolved.
Under UK Labour’s plans, announced ahead of its annual conference in Liverpool, a courtroom dedicated to dealing with rape trials would be established in every crown court in Wales and England.
Yesterday it was reported that the party pledged to set up specialist rape courts in Caernarfon, Cardiff, Carmarthen, Merthyr Tydfil, Mold, Newport and Swansea if they win the next General Election.
The party said that the aim was to speed up justice for victims and provide them with dedicated support, with rape victims currently facing a near three-year delay from reporting the crime to the end of their attackers’ trials.
Currently, only one in 100 suspected rapists is prosecuted, despite record-high numbers of complaints to the police.
The victim ends up dropping out in 42% of rape cases due to the long waits and inadequate support.
Independent sexual violence advisers would be hired at each court and all staff would receive specialist trauma training to support victims.
Labour would also work with the judiciary to ensure rape cases are prioritised.
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