Stalking victims will get “peace of mind” by being told the identity of their abusers under new government proposals, the minister for safeguarding has said. Jess Phillips said the proposed “right to know” statutory guidance aims to tell victims the identity of an abuser at the earliest opportunity. “It’s the most important thing,” she said. “Currently victims might not be told who their stalker is – leaving them potentially walking past them on the street without them knowing,” she told the Today programme.
The change is part of the government’s plans to give more protection to victims of stalking in England and Wales – with Home Secretary Yvette Cooper pledging the government will use “every tool available” to take power away from abusers. About one in five women aged 16 and over in England and Wales have been a victim of stalking at least once, official figures show.
The government said it had worked with broadcaster and activist Nicola Thorp, whose stalker is serving a 30-month jail sentence, in developing the new protections. Stalking Protection Orders – which can ban alleged stalkers from contacting or being within a certain distance of their victims – will also be made more widely available, the government said.
Offenders will also be prevented from contacting their victims from behind bars, the Home Office said. If an accused person is acquitted, courts will still be able to apply protection orders on them if there is sufficient evidence indicating they still pose a risk to someone.
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