PM’S response on rape clause “reprehensible” says SNP MP

Alison Thewliss MP joins supporters at the launch of her campaign to scrap the rape clause

SNP MP for Glasgow Central, Alison Thewliss, has criticised the Prime Minister’s response on the rape clause during Wednesday’s offering of PMQs.

Ian Blackford, SNP Leader at Westminster, had asked Theresa May whether she agreed with her colleague Esther McVey, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, that the rape clause offered women “double support”. The Prime Minister advanced that the UK Government has taken care to ensure the issue is dealt with sensitively, with Blackford countering that the clause is a disgrace.

The rape clause, or non-consensual sex exemption, has been in place for over a year, and forms part of the government’s wider policy to restrict Tax Credits and Universal Credit (child element) claims to the first two children in a family.

Earlier this week, McVey defended the government’s record on welfare reform during an evidence hearing of the Social Security Committee at Holyrood.

Commenting, Alison Thewliss MP said:

“It really is repugnant to see the Prime Minister leaping to the Secretary of State’s defence on the issue of the rape clause.

“Earlier this week Esther McVey described this vile policy as “extra help”, “an opportunity to talk” and “double support”. It is none of these things. By supporting it, the Prime Minister and her government are complicit in putting vulnerable women in harm’s way.

“Experts in violence against women recognise that forced disclosure of abuse brings a significant risk of reliving that trauma. This should always be at a time of a woman’s choosing, not at the point where she has to make a choice about putting food on the table to feed her children.

“Any defence of the two child limit and rape clause is truly reprehensible. The entire policy is ill-judged, cruel, and has nothing to do with supporting women. It must be scrapped.

“I hope the Secretary of State will reflect on her words, and respond to my request for an urgent meeting without delay”.

Thewliss condemns McVey’s comments on rape clause

Alison Thewliss MP joins supporters at the launch of her campaign to scrap the rape clause

Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central, has responded to comments made by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Esther McVey, during a Scottish Parliament Social Security Committee on the issue of Conservative welfare reform policies.

At Monday’s session McVey was questioned on the Government’s Universal Credit policy, which many committee members decried for pushing thousands of families into poverty, with an inequitable burden being placed on low-earners.

Alison Johnstone, Green MSP for the Lothian region, pressed McVey on the Government’s position on the two child limit and the non-consensual sex exemption, commonly known as the rape clause. Far from showing contrition, the Secretary of State instead posited that the policy offers “double support”.

A demonstration against the two child policy – one year since its implementation – will be held on Thursday 19 April at 5.30pm, on The Mound, Edinburgh.

Commenting, Alison Thewliss MP said:

“I didn’t think the Tory government could sink any lower on this issue, but they have once again outdone themselves.

“The Secretary of State is completely out of step with how damaging the two child limit is, and she demonstrated as much with her performance at yesterday’s committee hearing.

“Charities and agencies are lining up to tell the government how reckless this policy is, that it will push 200,000 children below the poverty line, and that women claiming tax credits for a third child conceived due to rape will have to prove the point during an interview, yet no one wants to listen. This behaviour is inhumane, it is unforgivable.

“Esther McVey is simply wrong about the rape clause. No woman should be forced to relive the experience of rape simply in order to qualify for tax credits. To endorse the existing process as in some way beneficial to the claimant is simply staggering.

“The issue of rape is an incredibly sensitive one, and it is not being treated as such by this Tory government. The very fact that women’s aid organisations in Scotland are refusing to act as third-party referrers should be ringing serious alarm bells about the policy’s viability.

“Unfortunately for the government, opposition to this pernicious policy continues to grow, and I look forward to joining with charities, agencies and demonstrators at the protest on Thursday. The government has performed various U-turns in recent weeks, without doubt the two child limit and rape clause should be its next. To this end I have written to the Secretary of State to ask that she meet with me, and women’s aid groups, as a matter of urgency”.

Thewliss raises rape clause with new Cabinet Ministers

Alison Thewliss MP joins supporters at the launch of her campaign to scrap the rape clause

Alison Thewliss, SNP MP for Glasgow Central, has wasted no time in contacting new cabinet ministers regarding the damaging effects of the two child policy and rape clause, following the Prime Minister’s reshuffle earlier this week.

The campaigning MP has written to both Esther McVey, the new Secretary of State at the Department for Work and Pensions, and also to Karen Bradley, who was announced as the new Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, to ask that one of their priorities be to reverse the implementation of the two child policy for tax credits and Universal Credit, and the associated rape clause.

The Government legislated in April 2017 to restrict Child Tax Credit and Universal Credit (child element) claims to the first two children in a family, a decision which the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) has said will force 200,000 children below the poverty line.

In addition, women who have conceived a third or subsequent child as a result of rape, must apply for an exemption, requiring them to relive their harrowing ordeal during an interview. In Northern Ireland, third party referrers are obliged under law to report instances of rape, even if doing so means that women are placed in further danger of violence.

Commenting, Alison Thewliss MP said:

“This is as good a time as any for the UK Government to drop the vile and medieval rape clause, and stigmatising two child policy which lies behind it.

“Esther McVey is now the fifth Secretary of State for the DWP since I was elected in 2015, and the first woman in that time. I want to know from her whether she is comfortable in making a woman who has suffered the trauma of rape, domestic violence and coercive control go through the shame of proving her child was conceived as a result of that sexual abuse.

“Similarly, I am keen to understand Karen Bradley’s views on the ongoing legal uncertainty in Northern Ireland with respect to this policy. The current system places third party referrers in an impossible position and arguably puts women off claiming an exemption at all. If cases are referred to the police, this potentially places women who are already vulnerable in even more danger at the hands of their abusive partners.

“So far, the UK Government has failed to listen on this issue. I am hopeful that the Prime Minister’s reshuffle presents an opportunity for the right thing to be done by women and families, and for this abhorrent policy to be rescinded once and for all”.

SNP MP heralds multi-agency response to two child policy

Alison Thewliss MP joins supporters at the launch of her campaign to scrap the rape clause

Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central, has praised the efforts of charities and organisations in coming together to condemn the two child cap and rape clause.

In a meeting held at Westminster today, UNISON, Women’s Aid, Child Poverty Action (CPAG), and representatives from a range of organisations, provided insight and testimony as to the effects being felt – in particular by women and families – as a result of UK Government changes to Universal Credit and Child Tax Credits which are now in force.

Commenting following the meeting, Alison Thewliss MP said:

“I’ve been fighting the UK Government on this issue for over two years now, and it’s clear to see from the attendance at today’s meeting that there is growing agreement that the two child policy and rape clause is a pernicious and medieval policy, and that it must be revoked.

“Analysis by CPAG and the IPPR shows that in excess of 200,000 children will be forced below the poverty line as a result of the two child policy. Indeed, working families with three children could be up to £2,780 worse off per year under the new rules.

“In addition, the UK Government is putting women in Northern Ireland in an impossible position given that they, and third party professionals, risk criminalisation if they do not disclose rape to the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Women in Northern Ireland should not be forced to choose between struggling to put food on the table or going through the full process of the criminal justice system.

“It is welcome that there is such strong agreement from charities and organisations on this issue. I sincerely hope that the weight of consensus will make the government see the error of its ways, and scrap the two child policy and the rape clause.”

Budget 2017: A missed opportunity to scrap rape clause

Alison Thewliss MP joins supporters at the launch of her campaign to scrap the rape clause

Alison Thewliss, SNP MP for Glasgow Central, has voiced her exasperation following the Chancellor’s budget statement today, which once again failed to address the shortcomings of the mediaeval two child policy and rape clause. The Glasgow MP noted that the omission only served to further illustrate the Government’s reluctance to do the right thing by women and families.

The two child cap restricts tax credit payments to the first two children per family. At the same time, it forces women who want to claim an exemption for a third child – for example as a result of rape – to do so by submitting evidence and navigating a laborious administrative process.

Commenting following the Chancellor’s budget speech, Ms Thewliss said:

“I am sorely disappointed and exasperated that the Chancellor has missed yet another opportunity to do the right thing and scrap the UK Government’s pernicious two child policy and rape clause, which will push 200,000 children into poverty.

“I have been pursuing the UK Government on this abhorrent policy for over two years now, and its sickening impact on women and families across the country is becoming clearer by the day.

“On top of this, the Government is continuing to fail women in Northern Ireland who – along with third party referrers – could face prosecution under existing laws in Northern Ireland if they apply for an exemption, as I highlighted recently in parliament. The fact that these women are being forced to choose between struggling to put food on the table or going through the criminal justice system is unthinkable.

“Clearly the Chancellor does not think the plight of women and families is an important enough issue to receive the attention it deserves. I, and my colleagues in the SNP, could not disagree more, and I will continue to urge the Government to reconsider their approach.”

Northern Ireland Secretary passes buck on rape clause

Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central, has highlighted that Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire has sidestepped serious concerns raised about the operation of the two child policy and rape clause in Northern Ireland.

On Wednesday, the campaigning MP challenged the Northern Ireland Office on the interaction between Section 5 of the Criminal Law Act (Northern Ireland) 1967 and referrals under the rape clause, as existing law in Northern Ireland results in automatic disclosure of rape allegations directly to the police.

The following day, the Northern Ireland Office issued a written statement which passed responsibility to the devolved Department for Communities in Northern Ireland, despite there being no Minister for that department since the Northern Ireland Executive collapsed in January 2017.

Speaking after the written statement was issued, Alison Thewliss MP said:

“The Northern Ireland Secretary clearly wasn’t listening carefully to the criticisms of the rape clause from groups such as the Northern Ireland Women’s Aid Federation, doctors, nurses, social workers and midwives, that I highlighted to him in Parliament on Wednesday.

“It is beyond farcical that the UK Government has passed the buck to a non-existent Northern Ireland Assembly; the reality remains that women and third party professionals risk criminalisation if they do not disclose rape to the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Women in Northern Ireland should not be forced to choose between struggling to put food on the table or going through the full process of the criminal justice system.

“Ministers in the Northern Ireland Office cannot hide behind devolution – the only way to remove the risk of criminalisation is to ask their colleagues in the DWP to scrap the pernicious and mediaeval two child policy and rape clause once and for all.”

Northern Ireland Secretary must act to scrap rape clause

Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central, today challenged Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire to use his influence in the UK Government to protect vulnerable women in Northern Ireland and scrap the two child policy and rape clause.

The campaigning MP asked the Northern Ireland Secretary to highlight the impact that Section 5 of the Criminal Law Act (Northern Ireland) 1967 has on referrals under the rape clause, as it results in automatic disclosure of rape allegations directly to the police. Concerns have been raised by women’s organisations, including the Northern Ireland Women’s Aid Federation, who Ms Thewliss met with in September following her attendance at an anti-rape clause rally in Belfast.

Third party professionals, such as doctors, midwives, social workers and support workers, can face a prison sentence of up to 10 years if they fail to disclose that a woman has been raped when completing the rape clause form – even if doing so means that women are placed in further danger of violence and sexual assault from their abusive partners.

Speaking after Northern Ireland Questions, Alison Thewliss MP said:

“I have been pursuing the UK Government on this abhorrent policy for over two years now, and it’s evident that the rape clause’s sickening impact on women in Northern Ireland is becoming clearer by the day. In addition to the repugnant position that vulnerable women are being placed in by having to disclose one of the worst experiences of their lives to make a claim for a benefit, they, and the third party professionals that support them, could face criminalisation under existing law in Northern Ireland.

“The Northern Ireland Women’s Aid Federation is the latest in a long line of women’s aid organisations, charities and trades unions to join the campaign against the two child policy and rape clause. The stakes are so high for thousands of doctors, nurses, women’s aid workers and support workers who face potential criminalisation under the rape clause.

“The Northern Ireland Secretary must now stand up for vulnerable women in Northern Ireland and ask his colleagues in the DWP to scrap the pernicious, mediaeval and unworkable two child policy and rape clause once and for all.”

Campaigning MP welcomes Judicial Review of two child policy

Alison Thewliss MP joins supporters at the launch of her campaign to scrap the rape clause

Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central, has today hailed the efforts of the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) who have been granted permission to apply for judicial review of the two child limit.

The decision follows a claim made by CPAG to the High Court against the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, challenging the DWP’s decision to introduce the two child limit in April 2017. The rule change now means child tax credits and universal credit claims are restricted to the first two children in a family.

In addition, the policy also requires tax credit claimants, whose third or subsequent child was conceived as a result of rape, to prove this to social workers and health professionals in order to qualify for an exemption – a move that has been categorically denounced by faith leaders, women’s welfare groups, trade unions and child poverty campaigners alike.

Alison Thewliss MP – who first exposed the policy – said:

“I welcome the work that the Child Poverty Action Group have done to put pressure on the UK Government, following the introduction of the callous and heartless two child policy earlier this year.

“The sad truth is, independent analysis shows that in excess of 200,000 children will move into relative poverty as a result of the two child policy. Indeed, those families who now choose to have a third child could be £50,000 worse off under these new rules than they might have been previously.

“Forcing women whose third child was conceived as a result of rape to relive their past trauma, simply in order to make a claim for benefit, is an appalling way to treat women and it’s hardly surprising that ministers have done everything in their power to avoid being drawn into discussion on this issue.

“With the prospect of a judicial review on the horizon, I will continue to urge the UK Government to scrap the two child policy and rape clause altogether”.

Campaigning MP: Northern Ireland MPs must unite to scrap rape clause

Alison Thewliss MP joins supporters at the launch of her campaign to scrap the rape clause

Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central, has called on Northern Ireland’s MPs to join her campaign to scrap the UK Government’s two child policy and rape clause, following a rally against the policy in Belfast today.

The campaigning MP spoke at the rally, which was hosted by Reclaim the Agenda and Women’s Aid Federation of Northern Ireland, and highlighted the risk that existing criminal laws place on vulnerable women and third party professionals for failing to disclose that the crime of rape had taken place.

Ms Thewliss is now writing to every MP in Northern Ireland to seek their support for her campaign to end the UK Government’s abhorrent two child policy and rape clause.
Commenting, Alison Thewliss MP said:

“Women in Northern Ireland sent a clear message to the UK Government today – the rape clause stigmatises vulnerable women, places them and professionals at risk of criminalisation and will cause greater poverty and misery, both in Northern Ireland and across the UK.

“Women in abusive relationships in Northern Ireland should not have to choose either entering the criminal justice system or struggling to make ends meet to support their families. The chilling effect of the rape clause on rape victims will discourage women from speaking out about the horrific crimes committed against them, which no-one, regardless of their party political persuasion, wants to see happen in a civilised society.

“MPs from all major political parties in Northern Ireland must now combine efforts to end the suffering that women and families have endured from changes to child tax credit entitlement. With the UK Government now reliant on the support of Northern Ireland MPs to survive votes in the House of Commons, it’s time for a renewed cross party effort to consign the poorly thought-out and abhorrent rape clause to the Downing Street dustbin.”

Campaigning MP to address rape clause rally in Northern Ireland

Alison Thewliss MP joins supporters at the launch of her campaign to scrap the rape clause

Alison Thewliss, MP for Glasgow Central, will be joining campaigners in Northern Ireland today (Thursday 21st September) to protest the introduction of the UK Government’s two child policy and rape clause.

The campaigning MP will join the Women’s Aid Federation of Northern Ireland and Reclaim the Agenda in Belfast to highlight the stigmatisation of vulnerable women by the rape clause and two child policy and to call on all of Northern Ireland’s MPs to join her campaign to scrap the two child policy and rape clause.

Under Section 5 of the Criminal Law Act (Northern Ireland) 1967, it is a crime to fail to report a criminal offence or to provide information which leads to the conviction of a crime. Third party professionals, such as doctors, midwives, social workers and support workers, could potentially face a prison sentence of up to 10 years if they fail to disclose that a woman has been raped when completing the rape clause form – even if doing so means that women are placed in further danger of violence and sexual assault from their abusive partners.

Speaking ahead of the rally, Alison Thewliss MP said:

“Since its introduction in April, the rape clause has caused untold harm and distress across the UK. The cruelty of forcing women to relive the worst ordeal of their life, just in order to make a claim for benefit, shows the morally repugnant depths to which the UK Government has plumbed.

“As if this wasn’t bad enough, women in Northern Ireland face a very specific risk under existing laws, which requires crimes such as rape to be reported to the police by the third party referrer. Women in abusive relationships are therefore placed in an appalling situation where either they are forced into the criminal justice system or they will struggle to afford to pay bills and put food on the table.

“The rape clause also puts professionals in Northern Ireland in an incredibly difficult position, as they face the prospect of their reputations and careers being destroyed if they do not report that a woman has been raped to the police. It’s no coincidence that a growing number of trade unions and women’s aid groups have refused to endorse the third party referral mechanism for claims made under the rape clause, given the risks it presents to their members.

“The rape clause could criminalise incredibly vulnerable women and the professionals who would wish to support them in Northern Ireland. I’ll be asking all of Northern Ireland’s MPs to join me in demanding an end to the two child policy and rape clause and the misery and poverty it has created for families across the UK.”