Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of extending prison sentences for perpetrators of violence against women and girls.

Sentencing is entirely a matter for our independent courts, taking into account all the circumstances of each case.

In April 2020, the Government changed the law to prevent the automatic release at the halfway point of offenders given a standard determinate sentence of 7 years or more for a serious violent or sexual offence with a maximum penalty of life, such as rape. Instead, such offenders will be released at the two-thirds point of the sentence. Provisions in the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill extend this to offenders serving sentences of 4 years or more for certain violent and sexual offences. This will ensure victims and the public are protected for longer.

In July 2021, the Government published its Violence against Women and Girls Strategy, with a Tackling Domestic Abuse Plan published on 30 March 2022, which will help drive a step-change in the response to these crimes and build on the Domestic Abuse Act 2021.