Oral Answers to Questions

Wera Hobhouse Excerpts

Tuesday 3rd February 2026 Commons Chamber

[Alex Davies-Jones]

I thank my hon. Friend for raising this really important issue. Ensuring that witnesses and victims can give their best evidence in court is vital if we are to achieve prosecution of these awful crimes. We are introducing legislation to improve access to special measures for witnesses and victims, including permitting victims to be accompanied while giving evidence, separate entrances and exits, and the provision of pre-recorded cross-examination. I would be happy to write to my hon. Friend with more information as the legislation progresses.

[Wera Hobhouse (Bath) (LD)]

I recently brought together domestic abuse charities in Bath, such as Developing Health and Independence, Voices, and the Nelson Trust, which provide services including how to navigate the complicated justice system. They all agree it is critical that they all work together and that there are joined-up local services, but what can be done nationally to bring organisations and charities together, rather than pitting them against each other in an environment of often limited resources?

[Alex Davies-Jones]

The hon. Lady is totally right to raise that point. We talk a lot about multi-agency working, but it is difficult to put into practice. As she will be aware, just before Christmas we published the “Freedom from Violence and Abuse” strategy on how we can tackle violence against women and girls, with multi-agency working on a national level and practices and applications at the heart of that strategy. I will meet our victims’ sector advisory board later this afternoon, and I will make sure to raise this point with them as well, so that we bring them in. They are the people on the ground delivering this work, so we should learn from them directly.