All-Party Parliamentary Group on Perpetrators of Domestic Abuse

Respect is honoured to provide the Secretariat for this cross party group of MPs and Peers. 

The group held its AGM on 21st January 2021 (on zoom) and we’re pleased to announce the election of a new Chair, Labour’s Alex Davies-Jones MP, whose constituency is Pontypridd in Wales and who has shown a great interest in this policy area. 

Alex Davies-Jones MP will be supported by her Vice-Chairs, Maria Miller MP (former Chair of the Equalities Select Committee), and Huw Merriam MP, both senior Conservatives. Baroness Bertin has been re-elected as Secretary, and is working hard on these issues in the Lords. 

Altogether, they make a very impressive team, and we look forward to working with them.

The AGM followed the standing down of our former Chair, Thangam Debonnaire MP, who is unable to continue in the role because of her new shadow ministerial role. We are very grateful for all she did as the first Chair to get the group going, and to build the parliamentary interest to get it to where it is now. 

The group is now composed as follows:

• Chair: Alex Davies-Jones MP
• Vice-Chair: Maria Miller MP
• Vice-Chair: Huw Merriman MP
• Treasurer: Gavin Newlands MP
• Secretary: Baroness Bertin
• Officer: Liz Saville Roberts MP
• Officer: Tonia Antoniazzi MP
• Officer: Christine Jardine MP 
• Officer: Peter Gibson MP
• Officer: Naz Shah MP
• Member: Preet Kaur Gill MP
• Member: Tony Lloyd MP
• Member: Sarah Champion MP
• Member: Karin Smith MP
• Member: Stephanie Peacock MP

As well as holding its AGM on 21st January, the APPG also held a closed session on the Domestic Abuse Bill, with contributions from key VAWG sector organisations on a range of amendments, including:

• Perpetrator Strategy (Veronica Oakeshott, Head of Public Affairs, Policy and Communications, Drive; Meena Kumari, Founder of H.O.P.E Training; Laura Dale-Harris, Associate Director, Social Finance)
• Statutory duty to ensure provision of community-based services (Jessica Asato, Head of Public Affairs and Policy, SafeLives) 

• Clause 55 amendment by Women's Aid and Imkaan covering:

  • Specialist services for Black and minoritised victims (Sophie Francis-Cansfield, Senior Campaigns and Policy Officer, Women’s Aid) 

  • Accommodation and the ‘Whole Housing Approach’ (Guddy Burnet, CEO, Standing Together Against Domestic Abuse; The DA Housing Alliance) 

  • Welsh perspective on perpetrator elements of Bill (Sara Kirkpatrick, CEO, Welsh Women’s Aid) 

The group is now planning the focus for future meetings, which are intended to be open to the public (on zoom for the time being). If you would like to be added to the mailing list for notification of future events, please sign up to our newsletter and tick 'APPG updates'.