Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether the Government intends to ratify the Istanbul Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.

The UK already complies with the vast majority of the articles to the convention including the criminalisation of forced marriage which was one of the pre-requisites of ratification as required by Article 37. Primary legislation will be needed to comply with the remaining extra-territorial jurisdiction provisions in Article 44 of the Convention before it can be ratified. The UK Government is liaising with the devolved administrations about ratification, including any further legislative steps necessary.