Refuge responds to government formally accepting amendment calling for threats to share intimate images to be made a crime.

Refuge responds to government formally accepting Amendment 48, calling for threatening to share intimate image and films to be made a crime.

Tonight, in the House of Lords, as part of the Report Stage of the Domestic Abuse Bill, the government formally accepted Amendment 48, which called for threatening to share intimate images to be made a crime.

Hetti Barkworth-Nanton, Refuge Chair, said:

‘Refuge is delighted that tonight, in the House of Lords, the government formally agreed to make threatening to share intimate images a crime as part of the Domestic Abuse Bill, by accepting amendment 48, tabled by Baroness Morgan and supported by Peers from across the House. 1 in 7 young women have experienced these threats to share, and will now be protected.

Almost 45,000 Refuge supporters called on the government to make this change. Refuge is grateful to everyone that took action, to the government for listening to survivors and acting on what they heard, to the brave survivors we work with every day and to Baroness Morgan for her tenacity and commitment in tabling this amendment. This is a victory for women and girls’

Baroness Nicky Morgan said:

‘I am thrilled that, in just a few months, we’ve managed to build such momentum behind this important issue. Together with Refuge, with their supporters, with a group of cross-party Peers, and, crucially, with brave survivors who have shared their story, we have secured government support for making threatening to share intimate images a crime. I’m grateful to the government for moving swiftly and decisively. Together, we have changed the law and ensured protection for millions of women across England and Wales’.

ENDS

Notes to Editors

Refuge supports more than 7,000 women and children on any given day, and runs the National Domestic Abuse Helpline, which is the gateway to accessing specialist support across the country. More than one in four women in England and Wales experiences domestic abuse at some point in their lifetime, and two women a week are killed by a current or former partner.

Please signpost to Refuge’s National Domestic Abuse Helpline 0808 2000 247, available 24 hours a day 7 days a week for free, confidential specialist support. Or visit www.nationaldahelpline.org.uk to fill in a webform and request a safe time to be contacted or to access live chat (live chat available 3pm-10pm Monday to Friday). For real time automated guidance on how to secure your personal devices Refuge has a Tech Safety Tool at www.refuge.org.uk.