Orders of the Day — Criminal Law (Amendment) (Householder Protection) Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 10:17 am on 4 February 2005.

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Photo of Tom Levitt Tom Levitt PPS (Rt Hon Hilary Benn, Secretary of State), Department for International Development 10:17, 4 February 2005

The hon. Gentleman is making a very sensible speech and drawing attention to some of the Bill's practical difficulties. One that concerns me is that it applies only to trespassers. What about a situation, for example, in which a woman is defending herself against a rape by another member of her household? Under the Bill, she would be covered only by "reasonable force"— she would not be allowed the same latitude in deciding how to respond to the attack as someone defending themselves against a burglar.