Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State for Policing, Fire and Crime Prevention on 21 January (HC23523), how many Home Office staff are employed to discharge the obligations under the Equality Act 2010, and what are the job titles of those staff.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
We refer Baronness Jenkin to the Written Answer provided on 19 February, PQ 30618.
This response clarified the number of FTE roles in the HR function within the central Equality, Diversity and Wellbeing Team which are specifically focused on discharging statutory duties under the Equality Act 2010. As stated in the Written Answer on 21 January 2025 to question 23523, roles may exist outside of the HR function which have some responsibilities relating to statutory obligations under the Equality Act 2010.
Due to the broad nature of responsibilities under the Equality Act 2010 and number of roles and functions in the Home Office, it is not possible to provide a specific number and related job titles which could be relevant in relation to the question asked. Additionally, some parts of the Equality Act 2010 could be relevant and/or apply to all roles in the Home Office such as the general public sector equality duties listed under Section 149 of the act.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the decision of the Supreme Court in For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers [2025] UKSC 16, whether the Passport Office will require passports to list only an individual's biological sex.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
I refer the Noble Baroness to the answer I provided to PQ UIN 41234 on 31 March.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government, following the imprisonment of a UK resident for conspiring to commit female genital mutilation against a young girl after the first conviction of its kind in England and Wales, what assessment they have made of their approach to investigating and prosecuting such cases.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is an abhorrent crime, and tackling FGM is an important part of this Government’s mission to halve violence against women and girls in a decade. We are focused on preventing these crimes from happening, supporting and protecting survivors and those at risk, and bringing perpetrators to justice.
A range of criminal offences and preventative tools are available in this space.
To support the police in investigating this crime, the College of Policing has published Authorised Professional Practice. This sets out the action the police should take, including: working with local organisations to raise awareness of FGM, taking immediate steps to safeguard individuals at risk, (including through FGM Protection Orders), and securing evidence.
We know that the familial and hidden nature of FGM, and the fact victims are often relatively young, can present challenges in bringing a prosecution. That is why the police and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have put in place a Joint Protocol on the Investigation and Prosecution of FGM. That encourages the police to refer every FGM case to the CPS at the earliest stage and sets out that the CPS will provide early investigative advice in all cases. In addition, every CPS area has a dedicated FGM Lead, and they have introduced guidance for prosecutors, which addresses common areas of challenge, including the need for expert evidence.
More broadly, the Government’s statutory guidance on FGM sets out the responsibilities of police and other statutory agencies in supporting and safeguarding women and girls affected by FGM, and the Home Office has made available free e-learning on FGM for frontline professionals which was completed by over 54,300 professionals in 2023.
Of course, we will look at the success of this case and ensure what worked is reflected in any review of the guidance.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to make it a criminal offence to misgender an individual.
Answered by Lord Hanson of Flint - Minister of State (Home Office)
This Government has no such plans.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there have been any child marriage convictions in the UK since the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Minimum Age) Act 2022 came into effect in February 2023.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
The UK is a world leader in the fight to stamp out the practice of forced marriage, with our dedicated Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) leading efforts to combat it both at home and abroad.
The new legislation which came into force in February this year is intended to proactively close potential loopholes and make prosecution under the existing law easier by removing the need to prove the use of coercion, which may require evidence from the victim. The FMU has undertaken a range of activity to raise awareness of the extended offence.
Data on convictions for criminal offences is published by the Ministry of Justice. The latest publication is to December 2022, before the extended offence came into force.
Additionally, we protect both adults and children with our Forced Marriage Protection Orders (FMPOs) and have criminalised the breach of FMPOs once in place. The number of forced marriage protection orders made in (1) 2019, (2) 2020, (3) 2021 and (4) 2022 can be found in the table attached.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many child marriage protection orders were issued in (1) 2019, (2) 2020, (3) 2021, and (4) 2022.
Answered by Lord Sharpe of Epsom - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
The UK is a world leader in the fight to stamp out the practice of forced marriage, with our dedicated Forced Marriage Unit (FMU) leading efforts to combat it both at home and abroad.
The new legislation which came into force in February this year is intended to proactively close potential loopholes and make prosecution under the existing law easier by removing the need to prove the use of coercion, which may require evidence from the victim. The FMU has undertaken a range of activity to raise awareness of the extended offence.
Data on convictions for criminal offences is published by the Ministry of Justice. The latest publication is to December 2022, before the extended offence came into force.
Additionally, we protect both adults and children with our Forced Marriage Protection Orders (FMPOs) and have criminalised the breach of FMPOs once in place. The number of forced marriage protection orders made in (1) 2019, (2) 2020, (3) 2021 and (4) 2022 can be found in the table attached.
Asked by: Baroness Jenkin of Kennington (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps the Home Office is taking to close safeguarding loopholes where a name is changed in relation to a change of gender.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Shadow Chief Whip (Lords)
The Government is clear that we want people who are transgender to be able to live their lives as they wish. We believe that the process of legally changing one’s gender is a serious and legally meaningful undertaking which requires appropriate checks and a level of formality.
Home Office policy is to allow a customer to change their gender without requiring a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC), in line with the Equality Act 2010, which does not allow discrimination between people who have changed their gender through medical intervention, for example via surgery, and those who have not.
Statements from medical consultants are accepted if they are registered on a medical website, can provide proof of their medical qualification and HM Passport examiners can verify; if not HM Passport Office examiners request another letter from another medical consultant if the original person cannot meet the necessary criteria.
The Government has begun an internal review into name change more generally. The review is looking at the formal and informal methods by which someone can change their name provide assurance that, where necessary, appropriate safeguards exist.