Widespread praise for MP's campaign to categorise domestic abusers
The speed at which a crucial change in sentencing domestic abusers has come about has surprised even Josh Babarinde, the driving force behind the campaign.
The Liberal Democrat MP for Eastbourne, who experienced domestic abuse in his own home as a child, has secured an important change which means domestic abusers will in future be categorised as such at sentencing and tracked in the prison system.
“It means a lot to me. I didn’t set out in politics to be the ‘domestic abuse campaigner’ but to walk down a corridor and have a minister stop and acknowledge what I was doing felt really meaningful in the light of everything my family and I had been through,” said Josh in an interview with the Eastbourne Reporter.
“It surprised me that in such a short time as an MP you can build a reputation based on your campaigning that can help you get stuff done.
“These measures have the capacity to protect the safety of thousands of people and, in some cases, could help save lives.”
At the moment, there are generally two assault charges used for those who commit violent acts in the home: actual bodily harm (ABH) and grievous bodily harm (GBH). There is no specific offence of domestic abuse in law.
But Josh says this means the Government does not know how many of those convicted are domestic abusers. This proved to be a problem when thousands of prisoners were released early from overcrowded jails last year.
Despite assurances from the Government that domestic abusers would not be released, some people who were let out fell into this category because there was no mechanism to label them. This left survivors in fear of further violence.
Josh, who was elected at the General Election last July, became his party's justice spokesperson and started the campaign last autumn. He highlighted his personal story of domestic abuse inflicted on his mother by a former partner which he says he overheard as a child.
His efforts to bring about change began with a Private Members' Bill, which is a parliamentary route for backbench MPs to raise issues in the hope of affecting legislation.
He persistently lobbied Government ministers including the Justice Secretary and Minister for Victims, drew together people from many sectors and went on breakfast TV with a survivor to argue his case.
Now a change recommended in a report on sentencing will be incorporated into new legislation which will come into force later this year. People will now be categorised as domestic abusers when they are sentenced in court.
The recommendation in the report by former Conservative Justice Secretary David Gauke states: “Improve identification of perpetrators of domestic abuse at sentencing to ensure the right interventions are in place to manage offenders.”
In practice, Josh said this means three important changes:
- Domestic abusers will not be released early from prison
- Anyone seeking information about a partner's history under ‘Clare’s Law’ will find out if the partner is flagged as a domestic abuser
- The Government will know how many domestic abusers are in prison, what the reoffending rate is and how effective interventions are.
“It will keep people safe,” Josh said.
The MP was also surprised by the extent of cross-party support and collaboration which occurred on this measure.
Cross-party praise
He was applauded for his campaign by several Government ministers and MPs from other parties, who praised his bravery in speaking out about his own experiences of domestic abuse as a child.
Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood told him directly in the Commons: "The review recommends a number of important measures, including better identifying domestic abusers at sentencing, so that we can monitor and manage them more effectively. I pay tribute to those who have campaigned on this, particularly the honourable Member for Eastbourne (Josh Babarinde)."
It followed similar praise two days earlier in the Commons from the Minister for Victims Alex Davies-Jones who said: "I am proud to work with him for victims in this place. He has always been constructive and is always seeking to do what is right."
Josh told the Eastbourne Reporter: “It is fairly unprecedented: I have not seen ministers go out of their way to recognise the efforts of an opposition MP as they have in this case.
“Some people have said to me ‘As a Lib Dem, a third party MP, you’re in the opposition – can you really get anything done?’ This proves that you can, that with the right idea and by rallying around people affected and by persisting, you can get something done.”
Family reaction
And what was the reaction of his mum and family, who have been through so much with him?
“It was really emotional for us. Mum is extremely proud that I have been able to help turn our experiences of domestic abuse into a campaign that will protect thousands of people from what we experienced.
“I was prepared to campaign on this for years and years if that’s what it had come to. To secure this in a matter of months is really exciting,” he said.
:: If you think this type of journalism which interviews people is better than reading PR handouts presented as ‘news’, please support us – it’s free to read but not free to produce. One-off donations are here or become a member here for the price of a coffee just once a month. Reader support is vital for the survival of the Eastbourne Reporter as a trusted source of information.
