Damning report shows how years of Tory failure impacted violence against women

The National Audit Office says it 'cannot be confident' that Government departments have done the best they can, pointing to delays actioning a 2021 strategy tackling violence against women and girls

Years of Tory failure meant there was no marked progress tackling violence against women and girls, a damning watchdog report says.

The National Audit Office says it "cannot be confident" that Government departments have done the best they can, pointing to delays actioning a 2021 strategy. Since coming to power, Labour has branded it a "national emergency" and vowed to halve violence against women and girls (VAWG) within a decade.

The NAO's report, published today says the Home Office has a "limited understanding" of how it was treated across other departments. The NAO said VAWG is a "significant and growing problem" affecting one in 12 women.

But it said the Home Office - the department leading work to tackle it - "is not currently leading an effective cross-government response". Despite the Tory government launching a VAWG strategy in 2021, it took a year for an oversight group to hold its first meeting.

This "only met four times in three years", the NAO said. The report said the Home Office "found it challenging to get buy-in from other government departments".

Between 2021 and 2024 the Home Office underspent cash allocated to the VAWG Strategy by an average of 15%. Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, who chairs the cross-party Public Accounts Committee, said: "It is disappointing that the Home Office does not know where money is being spent and whether it is making a difference.

"If the Home Office is serious about halving violence against women and girls within the next decade, it cannot continue relying on fragmented efforts. Government must take a hard look at the lessons from past strategies and develop a better understanding of what works - both to prevent these horrific crimes and improve outcomes for traumatised victims."

Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: “Government’s efforts to tackle violence against women and girls have not yet improved outcomes for the victims of these crimes. The lack of an effective, cross-government approach and a limited understanding of what works to help reduce these crimes, means the Home Office cannot be confident that government is doing the best it can to keep women and girls safe.

"The new government has set an ambitious target to halve violence against women and girls within the next decade. A well-informed and effectively implemented cross-government response is needed, that addresses both the causes and the consequences of these crimes.”

In a statement the Home Office said the previous government had failed to deliver change. It said: “The National Audit Office’s report has looked at the previous government’s work to implement the 2021 Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls strategy, and its failure to deliver systemic change to deal with these devastating crimes.

"We are delivering a step-change in the Government’s response, as we work to deliver our unprecedented manifesto commitment to halve violence against women and girls in a decade." It said that over the last six months, the department has "wasted no time in taking action to better protect victims and pursue perpetrators".

Among measures brought in are domestic abuse protection orders, starting the roll-out of domestic abuse specialists in 999 control rooms and strengthening the police response to spiking and stalking.