The UK must commit to tackling violence against women

Angela Crawley is continuing her call for the UK government to commit to tackling violence against women and ratify the European Council’s Istanbul Convention which will legislate for a series of coordinated measures to ensure cooperation between Government, local authorities and charities.

The Scottish National Party spokesperson for Women and Equalities, has urged the UK government to stop “stalling” on women’s rights, and ratify the convention it signed up to in 2012.

Despite agreeing to implement a series of coordinated measures, and pressure from politicians and campaign groups, the UK Government has failed to ratify the Convention.

Angela Crawley will be raising the issue at the United Nations in New York next month.

Commenting, Angela Crawley MP said:   “The UK government can and must do more to end violence against women, and I am calling on them today to ensure there is cooperation between Government, local authorities and charities.

“Next month I’ll be in at the UN conference on Women’s empowerment and the link to sustainable development – where the key priorities will be the elimination and prevention of all forms of violence against women and girls.

“Despite all the positive work that has taken place in ending the violence that many women experience on a daily basis, it should shame and anger us all that 1 in 4 women in the UK will still experience some form of violence at some point in their lives.

“Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and Women’s Aid have all called for the UK to ratify the pan-European convention on women’s and girls’ rights three years after signing up to it and 12 months since it came into force- yet we are still waiting.

“I urge the UK Government to ratify the Istanbul Convention and ensure that we continue to introduce a series of preventative measures that will tackle and eradicate domestic violence from our society, and in doing so send a clear message that any form of violence against women will not be tolerated.”