Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will require the police to assess the safety of people on bail returning to their home address.

Pre-charge bail is an important tool available to the police to manage suspects who have been arrested on suspicion of an offence.

Under reforms of pre-charge bail passed in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, police must seek victims’ views, where practicable, regarding whether bail conditions should be imposed and what any conditions should be.

The Government published new statutory guidance on pre-charge bail in June 2023, which can be found at the following address: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pre-charge-bail-statutory-guidance/pre-charge-bail-statutory-guidance-accessible

The guidance makes clear that if a suspect has been arrested in connection with an offence involving vulnerable people or domestic abuse, serious consideration must be given to the imposition of bail with conditions to safeguard the victim.