Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking through the criminal justice system to help tackle violence against women and girls.

We are committed to improving the Criminal Justice System response to violence against women and girls. Last year, we published the End-to-End Rape Review. Since then, we have been making progress and adult rape convictions increased by 30% in 2021 (447 convictions) compared to 2019 (345 convictions). We are delivering the cross-system action plan by:

• More than quadrupling funding for victim support from £41m in 2009/10 to £192m by 2024/25;
• Increasing the number of Independent Sexual and Domestic Abuse Advisors to over 1,000 by 2024/25;
• Introducing a single source of 24/7 support for victims of rape and sexual abuse later this year;
• In September, we completed the rollout of pre-recorded cross-examination for victims of sexual and modern slavery offences in all Crown Courts in England and Wales;
• The Police and Crown Prosecution Service are rolling out a new investigatory model for rape, which focuses on the suspect’s rather than the victim’s behaviour, called Operation Soteria;
• In June, we announced enhanced specialist sexual violence support in selected Crown Courts which includes improving facilities & technology at court, ensuring strong on-site support, improving communication with victims and better training.