Our public challenge of Vera Baird QC – male victims of domestic violence

Vera Baird QC is the elected Police and Crime Commissioner for Northumbria, a post with an income of £80,000 p.a. She was the Labour MP for Redcar from 2001 – 2010, and was appointed solicitor general in 2007. She and Harriet Harman are cut from the same cloth:

http://verabaird.biz/biography/

From what we can see on her website http://verabaird.com her concern about the victims of domestic violence appears to be strictly limited to women and children. She promised Sunderland women she’d tackle domestic violence if elected:

http://www.sunderlandecho.com/news/crime/police-commissioner-candidate-promises-sunderland-women-she-will-tackle-domestic-violence-1-4855113

She issued the following before her election:

http://verabaird.biz/2012/07/17/tackling-domestic-violence-against-women-and-girls/

From the document, with gender-specific terms in bold type:

Now Vera Baird has promised a step change in the way the police force will deal with the problem if she is elected in November. Ms Baird has announced plans to introduce a pilot project in Northumbria which will seek to prevent domestic abuse incidents occurring by using active monitoring and management of known serial perpetrators of domestic and sexual violence.

The proposal is part of five priorities to address the problem of violence against women and girls, which will be adopted by Labour Police & Crime Commissioners across the UK:

– Develop and roll out an integrated local action plan to tackle violence against women and girls – ensuring that VAWG is also prioritised in the local crime and policing plan and appointing a lead specialist, responsible for delivering the plan;

– Ensure specialist domestic violence and public protection units within the police service continue to be supported – whilst also striving to maintain the important existing network of independent advisers and advocates to women survivors of violence;

– Deliver specialist training in dealing with domestic and sexual violence, and stalking – as well as other forms of violence against women and girls, for neighbourhood police officers, for those in specialist protection units and for those involved in commissioning services for the survivors of violence;

– Support early intervention to tackle violence against women and girls – valuing the importance of working with schools, local authorities and community-based organisations to change attitudes and behaviour;

– Pilot preventative policing projects in areas including Northumbria– to promote the active monitoring and management of serial perpetrators of domestic and sexual violence, and stalking…

Vera Baird said:

I know from speaking to women’s group and refuges the challenge they face in dealing with this problem, especially in light of the cuts in funding from the Tory-led government. As Police & Crime Commissioner I would ensure an absolute commitment to increasing convictions and driving down incidences of violence against women and children…

I’m announcing today that if elected I will make tackling violence against women and girls a priority. Police forces in other areas of the country have brought in preventive measures to monitor and deter repeat perpetrators which we in Northumbria can adapt and improve.

We’re issuing the following challenge to Ms Baird:

Almost 300 studies and reports from around the world show that women are as physically aggressive or more aggressive than men towards their intimate partners:

http://j4mb.org.uk/2013/05/08/women-are-as-physically-aggressive-or-more-aggressive-in-their-relationships-with-spouses-or-male-partners/

Given the large numbers of male victims of domestic violence in Northumbria, what commitment will you be making – if any – to increase the number of convictions of female perpetrators of domestic violence, thereby driving down the incidences of violence against men and children?