UK Government Unveils Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy and Faces Local Election Delays
On 18 December 2025, the UK government announced a long-awaited Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) strategy in the Commons, unveiled by VAWG minister Jess Phillips. The strategy's action plan contains 34 commitments across three pillars: Prevention and early intervention; Relentless pursuit of perpetrators; and Support, alongside a separate whole-of-society section.
Key policing and justice commitments include establishing a dedicated rape and sexual offences team in every police force by 2029, Domestic Abuse Protection Orders (DAPO), new covert online investigators, releasing all VAWG perpetrators' convictions on request, counterterrorism-like powers to track offenders, and reforms including the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) to deport more foreign sex offenders.
The strategy also includes a GP referral service linking victims to specialist help, and funding commitments comprising £50 million for therapeutic support for child sexual abuse victims, £500 million for refuge funding, and £550 million for victim support services.
Online safety measures feature banning nudification tools and cooperation with technology companies to prevent nude images through nudity-detection filters. Education and prevention efforts involve curriculum changes on consent, sex and relationships; a referral service for teachers to identify youths showing signs of misogyny; and a planned men and boys summit next year.
Separately, local elections in England are undergoing reorganisation and may be delayed until 2027, with a 15 January deadline for councils to request postponements. Some mayoral elections have already been postponed to 2028. Counties affected include Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Surrey, East and West Sussex, and Hampshire. Conservative critics argue that delaying elections undermines democracy and question the government's consultation process, while Labour states that the delays reflect listening to local leaders.
