Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the National Rural Crime Network's report entitled Captive & Controlled, published in July 2019, what assessment she has made of the finding that domestic abuse lasts, on average, 25 per cent longer in the most rural areas than in urban areas; and what steps she is taking to tackle that disparity.

In 'Freedom from Violence and Abuse: a cross-government strategy to build a safer society for women and girls’ we set out the actions this Government is taking to prevent violence and abuse, pursue perpetrators, and support victims. This Government recognises the importance of ensuring support is accessible to all victims, including those living in rural and isolated communities.

A wide range of work is ongoing across government to improve the support for victims in rural areas, including:

• A call for evidence by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to better understand the specific challenges faced by victims in rural communities. This will help our wider work to improve support provision and address disparities in access to services.
• Investing in helplines to support victims of domestic abuse, which provide crisis support and advice to victims across England and Wales, regardless of location.
• Investing more than £1 billion over the next three years to support victims. Most of this funding will go to local commissioners, such as local authorities and Police and Crime Commissioners, who are best placed to commission services tailored to local needs.
• Reforming the commissioning landscape, including through a new cross-government commissioning statement and the forthcoming Duty to Collaborate, to improve the consistency, accessibility and effectiveness of support services for victims. Rurality will be a key consideration within this work.