Oral Answers to Questions

Irene Campbell Excerpts

Tuesday 16th December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Alex Davies-Jones]

The hon. Lady is right; the delays in our family court are untenable, and families, children particularly, are waiting too long for resolution. That is why we are determined to go further by rolling out our pathfinder model to ensure a child-centric approach to the family court. She will be aware that we are determined to repeal the presumption of parental involvement through our Victims and Courts Bill, which is going through the House. We are also determined to really get to grips with our family court. If the hon. Lady writes to me about that specific case, I will ensure that she gets a full response.

[Irene Campbell (North Ayrshire and Arran) (Lab)]

4. What steps his Department is taking to help protect victims of online misogyny through the criminal justice system.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Alex Davies-Jones)]

All misogyny is abhorrent, but we know that online misogyny is becoming increasingly pervasive. We have criminalised the creation of intimate deepfakes without consent, and we are creating new offences in the Crime and Policing Bill that will mean that perpetrators who take intimate images without consent face up to two years in prison. We will go further to ensure that we stamp out misogyny wherever it is—online or in the real world.

[Irene Campbell]

My constituent Dr Sam Rice has set up a grassroots charity called Kids For Now, which supports parents who want to delay smartphones for their children. There is much evidence to support that approach. For example, Ofsted has found that 80% of teenage girls are put under pressure to provide sexual images of themselves, which often end up online. Does the Minister agree that the effect that online misogyny has on children must be tackled?

Oral Answers to Questions

Irene Campbell Excerpts

Wednesday 5th November 2025 Commons Chamber

The Minister for Women and Equalities was asked—

[Irene Campbell (North Ayrshire and Arran) (Lab)]

1. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle violence against women and girls.

[Ms Julie Minns (Carlisle) (Lab)]

2. What steps she is taking with Cabinet colleagues to help tackle violence against women and girls.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Jess Phillips)]

Tackling violence against women and girls is a top priority for this Government. We will deliver a cross-Government, transformative approach underpinned by the new strategy, which we aim to publish as soon as possible. This strategy is overseen by the violence against women and girls ministerial board, the safer streets mission board and regular stocktakes by the Prime Minister. This structure holds the Government Departments to account.

[Irene Campbell]

As a former chair of North Ayrshire Women’s Aid, I was concerned to read reports that sexual assault and harassment of women and girls on trains has risen by more than a third over the past 10 years. That adds up to 2,661 incidents reported across England, Scotland and Wales last year, with one in 10 of them affecting children. Does the Minister agree that that cannot be allowed to continue, and that we must do more to tackle this shocking rise in violence against women and girls?