London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, May 31, 2025

Priti Patel’s fury as Johnson blocks public sexual harassment law

Priti Patel’s fury as Johnson blocks public sexual harassment law

Home Office fears PM views aggressive targeting of women and girls as ‘mere wolf whistling’ amid moves to create specific offence
Boris Johnson has infuriated the home secretary by overruling attempts to make public sexual harassment a crime. This has prompted concern at the Home Office that the prime minister views the issue as mere “wolf whistling”, rather than the aggressive targeting of women and girls going about their daily lives.

Sources say tensions have emerged between Johnson and Priti Patel, and other senior Home Office figures, after he blocked plans to make public sexual harassment a specific offence.

Patel’s consultation on tackling violence against women and girls, drew feedback from 180,000 contributors – the majority sent after the murder of Sarah Everard in March – with many respondents complaining of being hassled on a daily basis.

Johnson announced last week that he did not support any new law on tackling violence against women, claiming there is “abundant” existing legislation. This caused disquiet throughout the Home Office.

Sources believe the prime minister has completely misjudged the public mood following the murders of Everard and, more recently, Sabina Nessa, both attacked while walking in the capital.

A senior Home Office source, who requested anonymity, said: “Trying to bring it down to wolf whistling is massively problematic. But we’re going to make this happen. People are prepared to put their political capital behind this, and the home secretary is among those very much behind it.”

Another source said the prime minister seemed not to understand the issue: “Make no mistake, Boris Johnson is the person blocking and holding this back. He seems to be stuck in the past on this issue.”

A survey earlier this year revealed that more than half of women said they had suffered sexual harassment on public transport in London. The most common offence, experienced by more than a third of respondents, was being deliberately pressed up against by a stranger. The research, by YouGov, suggested that tens of thousands of incidents on buses and the Tube go unreported.

The issue of crimes against women has come under fierce scrutiny since Everard’s kidnap, rape and murder by serving Metropolitan police officer Wayne Couzens.

Despite Johnson’s words, Home Office officials are understood to be conducting a legal review into making public sexual harassment – which covers all behaviour that could make women uncomfortable in all public spaces – a crime in its own right.

Patel’s strategy to tackle violence against women and girls, published in July, states: “We are looking carefully at where there may be gaps in existing law and how a specific offence for public sexual harassment could address those.”

Indecent exposure was made a sexual crime almost 20 years ago, although as the case of Couzens underlined, such incidents, even when reported to the police, are often not taken seriously.

Georgina Laming, campaigns manager at children’s rights charity Plan International UK, said: “This year, tens of thousands of women and girls have told the Home Office about their experiences of harassment and violence. Girls as young as 10 are being harassed, followed and touched, and millions of them are forced to change the way they live their lives because of it.

“Public sexual harassment is relentless, and it needs to stop. The Home Office recognised that there are real gaps in legislation, which means girls aren’t protected from these behaviours by existing laws.”

Other influential supporters of making public harassment an offence include Victoria Atkins, the former safeguarding minister, who last month became justice minister, and Caroline Nokes, chair of the women and equalities committee.

Justifying his reasoning last week, Johnson said changing the law would mean more work for the police.

However, Sophie Linden, deputy mayor for crime and policing in London, told the Observer that making such behaviour an offence was important to making the streets safer for women and girls. “We’ve been lobbying very hard on a number of fronts,” she said, “including making sexual harassment a criminal offence in and of itself, which will make a difference to women and girls walking around.”

Women’s groups are also keen to underline harassment as an intersectional issue, also related to racism. Laming at Plan International said: “Our data shows that an overwhelming majority of girls of colour have experienced public sexual harassment, with one in six saying the harassment they face was also linked to their race. Public sexual harassment is serious, and when girls are approached in public spaces they are subject to threatening, violent and sexually explicit behaviour.”

As well as blocking a new law on harassment, the prime minister personally intervened to torpedo attempts to make misogyny a hate crime. It emerged this weekend, however, that Tory peers and MPs plan to defy Johnson and push ahead with attempts to change the law.

The Home Office said: “Our recently published tackling violence against women and girls strategy sets out that there are a number of offences in place which already capture street harassment.

“We are committed to ensuring that these laws work in practice. That is why, through new funding to tackle violence against women and girls, we will deepen our understanding of who commits these crimes, why they do so, and how this behaviour may escalate.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Satirical Sketch Sparks Political Spouse Feud in South Korea
Indonesia Quarry Collapse Leaves Multiple Dead and Missing
South Korean Election Video Pulled Amid Misogyny Outcry
Asian Economies Shift Away from US Dollar Amid Trade Tensions
Netflix Investigates Allegations of On-Set Mistreatment in K-Drama Production
US Defence Chief Reaffirms Strong Ties with Singapore Amid Regional Tensions
Vietnam Faces Strategic Dilemma Over China's Mekong River Projects
Malaysia's First AI Preacher Sparks Debate on Islamic Principles
White House Press Secretary Criticizes Harvard Funding, Advocates for Vocational Training
France to Implement Nationwide Smoking Ban in Outdoor Spaces Frequented by Children
Meta and Anduril Collaborate on AI-Driven Military Augmented Reality Systems
Russia's Fossil Fuel Revenues Approach €900 Billion Since Ukraine Invasion
U.S. Justice Department Reduces American Bar Association's Role in Judicial Nominations
U.S. Department of Energy Unveils 'Doudna' Supercomputer to Advance AI Research
U.S. SEC Dismisses Lawsuit Against Binance Amid Regulatory Shift
Alcohol Industry Faces Increased Scrutiny Amid Health Concerns
Italy Faces Population Decline Amid Youth Emigration
U.S. Goods Imports Plunge Nearly 20% Amid Tariff Disruptions
OpenAI Faces Competition from Cheaper AI Rivals
Foreign Tax Provision in U.S. Budget Bill Alarms Investors
Trump Accuses China of Violating Trade Agreement
Gerry Adams Wins Libel Case Against BBC
Russia Accuses Serbia of Supplying Arms to Ukraine
EU Central Bank Pushes to Replace US Dollar with Euro as World’s Main Currency
Chinese Woman Dies After Being Forced to Visit Bank Despite Critical Illness
President Trump Grants Full Pardons to Reality TV Stars Todd and Julie Chrisley
Texas Enacts App Store Accountability Act Mandating Age Verification
U.S. Health Secretary Ends Select COVID-19 Vaccine Recommendations
Vatican Calls for Sustainable Tourism in 2025 Message
Trump Warns Putin Is 'Playing with Fire' Amid Escalating Ukraine Conflict
India and Pakistan Engage Trump-Linked Lobbyists to Influence U.S. Policy
U.S. Halts New Student Visa Interviews Amid Enhanced Security Measures
Trump Administration Cancels $100 Million in Federal Contracts with Harvard
SpaceX Starship Test Flight Ends in Failure, Mars Mission Timeline Uncertain
King Charles Affirms Canadian Sovereignty Amid U.S. Statehood Pressure
Trump Threatens 25% Tariff on iPhones Amid Dispute with Apple CEO
Putin's Helicopter Reportedly Targeted by Ukrainian Drones
Liverpool Car Ramming Incident Leaves Multiple Injured
Australia Faces Immigration Debate Following Labor Party Victory
Iranian Revolutionary Guard Founder Warns Against Trusting Regime in Nuclear Talks
Macron Dismisses Viral Video of Wife's Gesture as Playful Banter
Cleveland Clinic Study Questions Effectiveness of Recent Flu Vaccine
Netanyahu Accuses Starmer of Siding with Hamas
Junior Doctors Threaten Strike Over 4% Pay Offer
Labour MPs Urge Chancellor to Tax Wealthy Over Cutting Welfare
Publication of UK Child Poverty Strategy Delayed Until Autumn
France Detains UK Fishing Vessel Amid Post-Brexit Tensions
Calls Grow to Resume Syrian Asylum Claims in UK
Nigel Farage Pledges to Reinstate Winter Fuel Payments
Boris and Carrie Johnson Welcome Daughter Poppy
×