Responding to reports that the NPCC has sent a letter to police chiefs asking them to consider “pausing” “non-priority arrests”, the Domestic Abuse Commissioner, Nicole Jacobs, says: “Reports that police chiefs are being asked by the National Police Chiefs Council to consider arresting fewer people are sobering. As violence against women and girls is now considered one of key national threats by the police – on a par with terrorism – I call on government and policing leaders to urgently clarify that this guidance should not apply to domestic abuse and sexual violence.
“The vast majority of domestic abuse cases are closed with no further action and the police often fail to arrest dangerous perpetrators. If police are put in a position where they have to question the capacity of the system prior to every arrest, it will only lead to further failings.
“I am highly concerned for victims’ safety. It is a disgrace that the prison overcrowding crisis has been allowed to escalate such that victims are now paying the price. These emergency measures have gone from bad to worse. I am urging the Home Secretary and Justice Secretary to come to a long term solution that puts victims’ safety first.”