Asked by: Neil Coyle (Labour - Bermondsey and Old Southwark)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how his Department plans to advise local authorities on the targeting of funding for tackling female genital mutilation across the UK.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. The Government is clear that we will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong suffering to women and girls.
In March 2019, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government allocated £375,000 for 37 local authority areas to fund locally-driven out-reach, engagement and communications on the practice of FGM. It is for Local Authorities to determine how best to utilise funding to combat the practice of FGM in their areas.
Data on FGM includes a 2015 City University and Equality Now study, part funded by the Home Office, which estimated that 137,000 women and girls who had migrated to England and Wales were living with the consequences of FGM, and approximately 60,000 girls aged 0-14 were born in England and Wales to mothers who had undergone FGM. The study also provides a breakdown of FGM prevalence estimates by local authority area which is available online at http://openaccess.city.ac.uk/12382/.
In addition, NHS Digital publishes data on the prevalence of FGM within the NHS in England. The most recent quarterly statistics were published in February 2019. A detailed breakdown of these statistics, including by local authority and age, is available online at https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/female-genital-mutilation.
To improve understanding of the prevalence of so-called ‘Honour Based Abuse’ (HBA), we introduced a mandatory HBA collection to the Annual Data Requirement (ADR) of police forces in England and Wales. This requires police forces to record where a crime has been committed in the context of preserving the honour of a family or community. This new collection is also capturing police recorded offences of FGM which were initially reported to the police under the mandatory reporting duty https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mandatory-reporting-of-female-genital-mutilation-procedural-information
Asked by: Lord Morris of Aberavon (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 7 March (HL Deb, col 711), whether they will ask the Attorney General to invite the views of inspectorates of the police and the Crown Prosecution Service on the problems of prosecuting cases of FGM.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Female genital mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. The Government will not tolerate a practice which can cause extreme and lifelong physical and psychological suffering to women and girls. We strengthened the law in 2015, including through the introduction of Female Genital Mutilation Protection Orders (FGMPOs), which are often issued with the purpose of preventing FGM from happening. 296 FGMPOs were issued between Octo-ber 2015 and September 2018. The Government works closely with the police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to ensure a robust and effective response to FGM.
Cases of FGM involving very young and vulnerable victims are among the most complex referred to the CPS. The CPS has appointed lead FGM prosecutors, and local investigation and prosecution protocols between the police and CPS are in place to ensure that robust cases for prosecution are built. A joint police and CPS focus group for so-called honour-based abuse (HBA), forced marriage and FGM is pushing for continuous improvement in the handling of HBA cases and an increased level of support for complainants and witnesses.
There are a number of specific issues with the prosecution of these crimes. They can involve victims being hurt and coerced by members of their own families and communities, making it difficult for them to feel confident to report the crime. Additionally, in many instances when cases are referred to the CPS, it does not have jurisdiction to prosecute, if the procedure was carried out overseas before the victim moved to the UK. Further, medical evidence alone cannot prove all the elements of the offence.
In 2015 Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary published a report – “The depths of dishonour – Hidden voices and shameful crimes” into the police response to so-called honour-based violence, forced marriage and FGM. This made 14 recommendations for improvement. Progress against those recommendations is monitored by the Home Office, including at a meeting on 27 February 2019 of the National Oversight Group for Domestic Abuse, Stalking and Harassment, chaired by the Minister for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability.
The Government is working with communities and stakeholders to emphasise the adverse health consequences of FGM and the fact that it is illegal, including through a recent awareness-raising campaign and through ongoing outreach work by the Home Office’s FGM Unit.
Asked by: Baroness Tonge (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to educate primary school children about the harmful effects of FGM as part of relationships and sex education; and to include any such information in any relevant guidance issued to teachers.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The government is committed to protecting young people from harm, including the horrific crime of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), perpetrated against some of the most vulnerable children in society. Through the introduction of compulsory relationships and sex education (RSE) in all secondary schools, we will ensure that pupils are fully aware of the illegality of FGM and that it will not be tolerated. This has been included, alongside topics such as honour-based abuse, grooming, forced marriage and domestic abuse, as core content for secondary pupils in the updated draft statutory guidance for relationships education, RSE and health education. Through these subjects we want to support all children to be healthy, happy and safe; arming them with the knowledge to recognise unhealthy behaviour in relationships, and how to seek help when necessary.
At primary level, we are introducing compulsory relationships education for all pupils, to put in place the building blocks for developing healthy relationships. There is no statutory requirement for schools to deliver teaching on FGM at primary, but schools are free to build on the core content to reflect the needs of their cohort of pupils. If a school considers the teaching of FGM to be age-appropriate for their pupils at primary, they are free to deliver this.
There will be a legal requirement for schools to consult with parents in the development of their policies for both relationships education and RSE. During this consultation, schools should share example resources with parents and ensure they understand the age-appropriate content that their child will receive. Schools will continue to be free to choose materials that are age-appropriate and sensitive to the needs of their pupils. Many organisations already provide high quality resources to support this teaching – schools can consider, for example, drawing on the expertise of the main subject associations, who also quality assure third party resources from expert organisations on specific topics.
We have committed to supporting schools and teachers to deliver these subjects to a high standard. We have an initial budget of £6 million for the 2019-20 financial year to develop a programme of support for schools, which will include supporting them to make appropriate choices regarding resources.
Asked by: Baroness Doocey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the prevalence of breast ironing in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Breast ironing is child abuse and it is illegal. The Government is committed to challenging the cultural attitudes that underpin so called ‘honour-based’ abuse (HBA), as set out in our cross-Government Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, published in 2016.
The Government is committed to ensuring that front-line practitioners who may encounter women and girls who are at risk of, or who have undergone, breast ironing, are aware of this issue and have the confidence to tackle it.
Border Force Officers at UK ports and airports are trained to look for those at risk of HBA and conduct regular joint operations (‘Operation Limelight’) with the police at airports across the country to raise awareness with poten-tial victims of HBA, including breast ironing. A specific briefing on breast ironing has also been shared with regional Border Force Safeguarding and Modern Slavery leads.
In addition, the following documents provide advice and support for profes-sionals in respect of safeguarding children from abuse, including HBA:
• Keeping Children Safe in Education (p.80-82): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2
• Working Together to Safeguard Children: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-safeguard-children--2
• CPS Legal Guidance on Honour-Based Violence and Forced Marriage: https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/honour-based-violence-and-forced-marriage
The police have a range of offences at their disposal to deal with any cases of breast ironing they encounter, including common assault, actual bodily harm and grievous bodily harm. There are also specific offences of child cruelty and causing or allowing a child to suffer serious physical harm, both of which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment. As such, the Government does not have plans to introduce a stand-alone criminal offence.
No assessments have been made of the prevalence of breast ironing in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Doocey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to introduce legislation that will make the practice of breast ironing a stand-alone criminal offence; and if so, when they will introduce such legislation.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Breast ironing is child abuse and it is illegal. The Government is committed to challenging the cultural attitudes that underpin so called ‘honour-based’ abuse (HBA), as set out in our cross-Government Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, published in 2016.
The Government is committed to ensuring that front-line practitioners who may encounter women and girls who are at risk of, or who have undergone, breast ironing, are aware of this issue and have the confidence to tackle it.
Border Force Officers at UK ports and airports are trained to look for those at risk of HBA and conduct regular joint operations (‘Operation Limelight’) with the police at airports across the country to raise awareness with poten-tial victims of HBA, including breast ironing. A specific briefing on breast ironing has also been shared with regional Border Force Safeguarding and Modern Slavery leads.
In addition, the following documents provide advice and support for profes-sionals in respect of safeguarding children from abuse, including HBA:
• Keeping Children Safe in Education (p.80-82): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2
• Working Together to Safeguard Children: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-safeguard-children--2
• CPS Legal Guidance on Honour-Based Violence and Forced Marriage: https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/honour-based-violence-and-forced-marriage
The police have a range of offences at their disposal to deal with any cases of breast ironing they encounter, including common assault, actual bodily harm and grievous bodily harm. There are also specific offences of child cruelty and causing or allowing a child to suffer serious physical harm, both of which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment. As such, the Government does not have plans to introduce a stand-alone criminal offence.
No assessments have been made of the prevalence of breast ironing in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Doocey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking to ensure police and frontline staff are (1) aware of, and (2) trained in dealing with the practice of breast ironing in the UK.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Breast ironing is child abuse and it is illegal. The Government is committed to challenging the cultural attitudes that underpin so called ‘honour-based’ abuse (HBA), as set out in our cross-Government Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, published in 2016.
The Government is committed to ensuring that front-line practitioners who may encounter women and girls who are at risk of, or who have undergone, breast ironing, are aware of this issue and have the confidence to tackle it.
Border Force Officers at UK ports and airports are trained to look for those at risk of HBA and conduct regular joint operations (‘Operation Limelight’) with the police at airports across the country to raise awareness with poten-tial victims of HBA, including breast ironing. A specific briefing on breast ironing has also been shared with regional Border Force Safeguarding and Modern Slavery leads.
In addition, the following documents provide advice and support for profes-sionals in respect of safeguarding children from abuse, including HBA:
• Keeping Children Safe in Education (p.80-82): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2
• Working Together to Safeguard Children: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-safeguard-children--2
• CPS Legal Guidance on Honour-Based Violence and Forced Marriage: https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/honour-based-violence-and-forced-marriage
The police have a range of offences at their disposal to deal with any cases of breast ironing they encounter, including common assault, actual bodily harm and grievous bodily harm. There are also specific offences of child cruelty and causing or allowing a child to suffer serious physical harm, both of which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment. As such, the Government does not have plans to introduce a stand-alone criminal offence.
No assessments have been made of the prevalence of breast ironing in the UK.
Asked by: Baroness Doocey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to issue guidance to local authority children's services, childcare providers and schools on how to detect and prevent breast ironing; and if so, when such guidance will be issued.
Answered by Lord Agnew of Oulton
The government is committed to protecting children and young people from all forms of abuse and neglect. Professionals should follow the attached statutory guidance ‘Working Together to Safeguard Children’ (2018) to deal with breast ironing, as with any other form of abuse.
Schools should also have regard to the attached statutory guidance ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ (2018).
We are introducing Relationships Education and Relationships and Sex Education which will become mandatory in all schools from September 2020. The associated guidance sets out that pupils at secondary school should be taught to recognise when relationships (including family relationships) are unhealthy or abusive. This includes the unacceptability of neglect, emotional, sexual and physical abuse and violence, and addressing honour based violence and female genital mutilation. Pupils will also be taught how to get further advice, including how and where to access confidential support.
Asked by: Lord Carlile of Berriew (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what consideration they have given to introducing legislation to ban the practice of breast ironing.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Breast ironing is child abuse and it is illegal. The Government is committed to challenging the cultural attitudes that underpin so called ‘honour-based’ abuse (HBA), as set out in our cross-Government Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy. No one should suffer because of who they are or which community they are born into.
In addition, the following documents provide advice and support for professionals in respect of safeguarding children from abuse, including HBA:
• Keeping Children Safe in Education (p.80-82): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2
• Working Together to Safeguard Children: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-safeguard-children--2
• CPS Legal Guidance on Honour-Based Violence and Forced Marriage:https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/honour-based-violence-and-forced-marriage
Border Force officers at UK ports and airports are trained to look for those at risk of HBA. Border Force conducts regular joint operations (‘Operation Limelight’) with the police at airports across the country to raise awareness with potential victims of HBA, including breast ironing.
While there is no specific offence of breast ironing, the police have a range of other offences at their disposal to deal with any cases they encounter. This includes offences of common assault, actual bodily harm or grievous bodily harm. There are also specific offences of child cruelty and causing or allowing a child to suffer serious physical harm, both of which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment.
Asked by: Lord Carlile of Berriew (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department on 22 March 2016 (HC Deb, col 1552) which stated that they were "absolutely committed to putting a stop to" the practice of breast ironing in the UK, what progress they have made in regard to that issue; and what further steps they intend to take to stop that practice.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
Breast ironing is child abuse and it is illegal. The Government is committed to challenging the cultural attitudes that underpin so called ‘honour-based’ abuse (HBA), as set out in our cross-Government Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy. No one should suffer because of who they are or which community they are born into.
In addition, the following documents provide advice and support for professionals in respect of safeguarding children from abuse, including HBA:
• Keeping Children Safe in Education (p.80-82): https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/keeping-children-safe-in-education--2
• Working Together to Safeguard Children: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-safeguard-children--2
• CPS Legal Guidance on Honour-Based Violence and Forced Marriage:https://www.cps.gov.uk/legal-guidance/honour-based-violence-and-forced-marriage
Border Force officers at UK ports and airports are trained to look for those at risk of HBA. Border Force conducts regular joint operations (‘Operation Limelight’) with the police at airports across the country to raise awareness with potential victims of HBA, including breast ironing.
While there is no specific offence of breast ironing, the police have a range of other offences at their disposal to deal with any cases they encounter. This includes offences of common assault, actual bodily harm or grievous bodily harm. There are also specific offences of child cruelty and causing or allowing a child to suffer serious physical harm, both of which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years imprisonment.
Asked by: Jim Cunningham (Labour - Coventry South)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of the number of women that were (a) victims of and (b) considered to be at risk of female genital mutilation since the introduction of the Serious Crime Act 2015.
Answered by Victoria Atkins - Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a crime and it is child abuse. The Government is clear that we will not tolerate a practice that can cause extreme and lifelong suffering to women and girls.
Data on FGM includes a 2015 City University and Equality Now study, part funded by the Home Office, which estimated that 137,000 women and girls who had migrated to England and Wales were living with the consequences of FGM, and approximately 60,000 girls aged 0-14 were born in England and Wales to mothers who had undergone FGM. The study also provides a breakdown of FGM prevalence estimates by local authority area which is available online at http://openaccess.city.ac.uk/12382/.
In addition, NHS Digital publishes data on the prevalence of FGM within the NHS in England. The most recent quarterly statistics were published in September 2018. A detailed breakdown of these statistics, including by local authority and age, is available online at https://digital.nhs.uk/data-and-information/publications/statistical/female-genital-mutilation.
To improve understanding of the prevalence of so-called ‘Honour Based Violence’ including FGM, we amended the police Annual Data Requirement (ADR) to allow police forces the opportunity from April 2018 to record on a voluntary basis where a crime has been committed in the context of preserving the ‘honour’ of a family or community. This new voluntary collection is also capturing police recorded offences of FGM which were initially reported to the police under the duty.