Sexual Offences: Drugs
Home Department
Helen Jones (Warrington North, Labour)
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department
(1) what steps her Department has taken to improve evidence-gathering processes to ensure that tests for date rape drugs can be carried out where appropriate;
(2) what steps her Department has taken to tackle drink spiking leading to drug-facilitated sexual assault and other offences;
(3) what recent assessment she has made of the prevalence of drug-facilitated sexual assaults.
James Brokenshire (Old Bexley and Sidcup, Conservative)
holding answer
Actions to improve evidence gathering are a matter for the police. The Association of Chief Police Officers and the National Police Improvement Agency issue guidance on investigating and prosecuting rape.
The Home Office website offers advice to people who believe they have been victim to drug- facilitated sexual assaults. This is available at
http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/CrimeJusticeAndTheLaw/Typesofcrime/DG_10027698
FRANK, the Home Office sponsored drug information and advice service, has information on tranquillisers (which includes Rohypnol) available on its website, available at:
Information on the prevalence of drug-facilitated sexual assaults is not held centrally by the Home Office.