London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 17, 2025

‘We can’t wait any longer’: anger over Priti Patel’s ‘inaction’ on violence against women

‘We can’t wait any longer’: anger over Priti Patel’s ‘inaction’ on violence against women

The killing of Ashling Murphy this month has highlighted the lack of progress on promises made after Sarah Everard’s murder
Leading campaign groups that have spent years tackling the growing problem of violence against women and girls are becoming increasingly frustrated with an apparent lack of action from the home secretary six months after the government announced a major strategy designed to tackle the issue.

Despite the promise of a “radical programme of change” announced by Priti Patel in late July last year, campaigners say a number of central pledges have disappeared without trace, or have not been implemented, without proper explanation.
The strategy was announced against a backdrop of widespread calls for urgent and radical change following the murder of Sarah Everard, who was killed while walking home

from a friend’s house in south London several months earlier. These calls were made again this month following the murder of schoolteacher Ashling Murphy in Ireland.

The 23-year-old was attacked and strangled while out jogging on a canal path near Tullamore, County Offaly. Last Wednesday, a week after her death, a 31-year-old man was remanded in custody charged with her murder.

Georgie Laming, campaigns manager at Plan International UK, whose campaign for public sexual harassment to become a specific offence has 500,000 supporters, said: “It has been six months since the home secretary promised a review into the legal gaps on public sexual harassment, and a decision on a new law to criminalise it. But we are yet to see any movement. Women and girls can’t afford to wait any longer.”

Saskia Garner, head of policy and campaigns at the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, said: “We would welcome an update on all commitments made in the violence against women and girls strategy. All these issues urgently need to be addressed to ensure that the voices of women and girls experiencing devastating crimes including stalking and harassment are heard.”

Another source said: “There is deep frustration over the apparent progress over elements of the strategy.

“The fact is women are still being killed in high-profile murders every few months but there does not seem to be any burning desire to actually deliver key parts.”

Chief among their concerns is the outcome of a legal review committed to by the Home Office into gaps in existing law and how a specific offence for public sexual harassment could address those. Sources say there is still no timescale for when the review is complete, or even if it will support calls for a new harassment offence.

Campaigners also point out that a much-hyped information campaign targeting perpetrators of violence against women has yet to be launched despite hopes that it would be up and running before Christmas, a period when domestic abuse traditionally rises.

In addition, women’s groups argue they do not know what has happened to a £5m “safety of women at night fund” or another £3m to “better understand what works to prevent violence against women and girls.”

Questions also surround the StreetSafe app, which allows women to record where they feel unsafe, and which was the focus of a three-month pilot that ended in early December.

More than 180,000 people responded to a consultation on the strategy, the vast majority after it reopened following Everard’s murder.

A Government spokesperson said: “Since the launch of the strategy we have delivered several of its commitments, helping to tackle this horrific crime. For the first time ever there is a national police lead for violence against women and girls, we’ve implemented the landmark domestic abuse act, launched the safety of women at night fund and given out a further £25m for safer streets projects. We are also carefully considering the Law Commission’s recommendations on a specific public sexual harassment offence.”

“We know there is more to do, which is why we continue to work closely with the women’s sector and academics on the national communications campaign, which will launch shortly.”
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Effective and Impressive Generation Z Protest: Images from the Riots in Nepal
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Sam Altman sells the 'Wedding Estate' in Hawaii for 49 million dollars
Trump: Cancel quarterly company reports and settle for reporting once every six months
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
US Launches New Pilot Program to Accelerate eVTOL Air Taxi Deployment
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
×