My Lords, Amendments 137 and 138 are in my name and the names of the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of London and the noble Baronesses, Lady Meacher and Lady Wilcox. I thank them for working with me on this, as have the noble Lords, Lord Marks, Lord Anderson, Lord Blunkett, Lord Trevethin and Oaksey, and others. I am most grateful to all noble Lords who have indicated their support to me. I am also grateful to the Government for listening to the arguments put forward on Second Reading and for meeting my colleagues on this.
I welcome the Lord Chancellor’s announcement that he wants to see this offence on the statute book, with a maximum sentence of seven years. The Government are minded to include the offence in the police, crime, sentencing and courts Bill rather than this one. I will argue that it sits best in this Domestic Abuse Bill; I very much welcome the Government being open to discussions on where it should sit and on the wording of the amendment.
This new offence should be in this Bill because it is concentrated in domestic abuse cases. One police force recently assessed a random sample of its cases featuring strangulation and found that 80% were intimate partner violence while 20% were other family abuse cases. This is clear evidence that this crime features predominantly within domestic abuse. It is important that this offence is regarded by the police and prosecutors as part and parcel of the criminal justice response to domestic abuse. Having it in this Bill will enhance the understanding that this type of offending is very much about domestic abuse. It is an offence used to frighten and have control over a person.
The amendments I am proposing would each add a new clause to the Bill to establish an offence of non-fatal strangulation or suffocation. Amendments 137 and 138 are alternatives. The first refers to all non-fatal strangulations or suffocations; the second limits the offence to those where the victim and perpetrator are personally connected, as defined in Clause 2. If the first amendment fails, the second will be next best. The first, Amendment 137, is preferable, as it would protect more women—for example, those attacked by acquaintances or strangers and those in a more casual dating situation.
Some might argue that as the Bill is for domestic abuse only, Amendment 138 should be considered. However, there are two reasons I urge noble Lords to accept the first alternative. First, it is consistent with the Istanbul convention, which forms part of the policy context of this Bill. The Istanbul convention sets out to prevent and combat violence against women in all situations, as well as to tackle domestic violence. The wider amendment is consistent with this. Secondly, the Government’s amendment, described as the “rough sex” amendment, introduced in the other place and now in the Bill as Clause 65, is rightly not limited to people who are personally connected. It covers any situation, as the Government accepted this was an opportunity to address such harm more widely. The same logic applies for non-fatal strangulation or suffocation, which affects 20,000 victims every year in the UK.
As noble Lords can imagine, being strangled is terrifying. Fear of imminent death is a primal fear—we can all imagine that—and victims of these attacks are right to be fearful. Less pressure than it takes to open a canned drink stops blood flowing to the brain. Loss of consciousness quickly occurs, normally in as little as 10 to 15 seconds. Incontinence of urine tends to happen at around 15 seconds and bowel incontinence at around 30 seconds. A strangulation can quickly be fatal if it triggers a heart attack, in which case death can occur within a few seconds.
When a strangulation is survived the victims may have other health problems, such as a fractured trachea, internal bleeding, dizziness, nausea and tinnitus. A break
in the flow of oxygen to the brain causes neurological problems such as memory loss, facial droop and an increased risk of miscarriage—even a stroke several months later, as a result of blood clots. Many of these medical effects would come as a surprise to most members of the public, including the police, who therefore do not understand the seriousness of these crimes. Similarly, survivors of domestic abuse may not realise the true dangers they face.
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In New Zealand, the introduction of a new offence triggered increased knowledge in the medical profession and the increased use of medical evidence in prosecutions. I am glad that the Government recognise that, as it stands, the law simply does not operate well for non-fatal strangulation. Our existing laws on assault are a very poor fit, as they focus on visible injuries. Here, there is a high level of violence but little or no visible injury. Having a stand-alone offence will make assessing cases much more straightforward for the police and prosecutors.
We can be even more confident about this knowing that the Police Superintendents’ Association supports this new offence. That speaks volumes because its members include the public protection police leads, who deal with domestic abuse. These are senior officers with specialist knowledge; they know what makes a difference on the ground. Given that this is a grave and frequently occurring offence, it is important to get it on the statute book as soon as possible. I appreciate that the Committee will not want to rush this. As the noble Lord, Lord Anderson of Ipswich, said at Second Reading,
“hurried law can be bad law”.—[Official Report, 5/1/21; col. 92.]
However, in this case, given how much work and thought has gone into this already—and given the experience of other countries—I am confident that we can proceed with the offence in this Bill.
We are nearing the end a journey for the Bill which began four years ago. Placing this offence in another Bill that has not yet had its First Reading—and which, I understand, is unlikely to reach Royal Assent until the end of this year—would be a considerable delay. We know that, in the UK, two women are killed every week by a partner or ex-partner. By this time next year, another 100 women will have lost their lives—women very much loved by their families and friends. A high proportion of them will have suffered non-fatal strangulation before their deaths.
Clearly not all deaths can be prevented, but some can. Improving protection is so urgent. We must not delay. This is a real opportunity to save those victims’ lives. I look forward to working with Ministers on this issue, and I hope that the Minister can assure the House that the Government will introduce this offence, without delay, as part of this Bill. I urge all noble Lords to support this amendment and beg to move.