§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make it his policy to institute a new strategy to combat domestic violence; and what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education and the Lord Chancellor on this subject.
§ Mr. MacleanIn their reply to the 1993 Home Affairs Select Committee report on domestic violence, the Government made it clear that domestic violence must be tackled vigorously. Action is being taken to ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice; that victims and their children receive the necessary practical and emotional support and that preventive strategies to help reduce violence and suffering are identified and promoted. The aim of the Government's public awareness campaign on domestic violence, which was launched on 24 October, is to send a clear message that domestic violence is a crime and no one should stand for it.
The Department for Education and the Lord Chancellor's Department are represented on the ministerial group on domestic violence.
§ Mr. Jim CunninghamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents of domestic violence were recorded in the latest year for which figures are available.
§ Mr. MacleanI refer the hon. Member to the reply given to a question from the hon. Member for Liverpool, Mossley Hill (Mr. Alton) on 26 October,Official Report, columns 638–39.