Protecting the Vulnerable: Stalking, Knife Crime and more

One of the saddest parts of an MP’s life is dealing with the death of a constituent from violent crime or hideous accident, especially if the victim is young.

Richard Graham MP and Alex Chalk MP hosted a discussion in Parliament on Tuesday to address issues around stalking sentences. Minister for Sentencing Dominic Raab MP gave his thoughts on the MPs’ campaign to extend the maximum sentence for stalking, currently at only five years’ imprisonment.

Until May 2015 all I knew about stalking was what I’d read in the papers, and heard from some colleagues in Parliament (a surprising number of whom have been stalked). But then I learnt about Dr Eleanor Aston, a GP in Gloucester and Cheltenham resident.

In the last Prime Minister’s Questions of the year I asked David Cameron for his support in reviewing sentences for dangerous stalkers. Why?

Responding to the ‘case for compassion’ for police widows and widowers made by City MP Richard Graham, Minister Mike Penning recognised a compelling case had been made and promised to review analysis done by the Home Office and the Treasury on the details soon.

How many times have you heard words like: ‘it doesn’t make any difference who you vote for’; ‘they’re all the same, nobody listens anyway’ and, most depressing of all for those of us who’ve lived through what happens under dictatorships of right and left alike – ‘voting is a waste of time’?

DAVID Cameron has indicated his support for increased prison sentences for banned drivers who kill on the roads following the death of a well-respected Gloucester man.