The statement made by Andy Burnham, the Prime Minister, on 21 September 2026.
The brutal abduction, rape and murder of Sarah Everard at the hands of a serving police officer changed everything. As the country recoiled in collective horror, we were forced to confront the reality women and girls face every day.
For me, that happened when watching the details of Sarah’s death unfold on the news with my daughters. As they watched, they began to open up about some of the things they and their friends have to deal with.
Sarah’s loss was at the most violent end of a scale of misogyny that women experience all around them. It begins with words designed to disrespect them, or catcalling to intimidate women on their own streets. It can grow into harassment, stalking and image-based abuse that seeks to humiliate and dehumanise. At its most extreme, it can lead to violence, abuse and murder. The outcomes may be different, but they have the same poisonous roots.
This behaviour corrodes our whole society. Yet it is women who are expected to change their behaviour to accommodate it. Wearing trainers so they are ready to run. Changing their route home. Holding their keys between their fingers.
Checking over their shoulder. And shamefully, it is women who must find the strength to speak out, an experience which too often becomes as traumatic as the original abuse. That has to change. And it has to change now.
We must end the shame placed on victims and put the responsibility where it belongs: on the men who abuse them. Instead of asking women and girls: what are you doing to avoid this? We should be asking ourselves: what are we doing to change this?
I am committed to tackling violence against women and girls and getting justice for victims. When I took office, I was presented with some good plans to roll out specialist rape and sexual abuse police offence teams. But these were not due to be introduced until 2029. I have now brought these reforms forward to next year.
Prosecution rates for rape remain shamefully low. Victims wait years for justice. Cases drag on. And too many victims eventually withdraw, exhausted by a system that was supposed to deliver justice for them. It is not good enough.
We will ensure court buildings have separate entrances and private rooms to support vulnerable victims. And we will create a new victim support role in courts that will mean women are not alone in this difficult period of their lives. In short, we will rebalance the scales of justice and put women and girls first.
These changes are long overdue and will help, but directing our efforts on prosecution alone is not enough. We must do more to stop these crimes happening in the first place. To fix this problem, we require a culture shift in our society and a focus on how we prevent male violence against women and girls.
This starts with education. Our new curriculum will teach young people about healthy relationships and guide them away from harmful misogynistic influences. We have made strangulation pornography illegal, so young men do not grow up thinking sexual violence is normal and young women do not feel pressured into dangerous acts. We will teach students to spot the signs of abuse as they head off to university. And the Minister for Women and Equalities will lead a new national taskforce to tackle and prevent misogyny.
I know that too often people feel like politics does not work for them and that the government is unable to make a difference when it matters. I am determined to change that. I want to see every part of government and every part of society work together on this issue. And early next year, I will bring together experts from across the UK and around the world for a summit to find new solutions.
My daughters challenged me that evening to do my bit so every woman can live their life free from fear. That is a responsibility I take very seriously both as a man and as Prime Minister. Together, we can change our culture, make our country safer and bring back hope.