Member

Above all, we are most disappointed by the defeat of Amendment 25, which sought to prevent domestic abusers and sex offenders from benefiting from an automatic presumption of suspended sentences. We firmly believe that Amendment 25 was necessary to protect women and girls from violence and sexual assault. A direct consequence of government and Liberal Democrat opposition may be that victims of sexual assault and domestic abuse will be forced to live in the same communities as the offenders who abused them. It is not sufficient, we submit, for the Minister to claim that custody remains available in “exceptional circumstances”. As my noble and learned friend Lord Keen of Elie made clear, offences of sexual assault and domestic abuse are, by their very nature, exceptional.