13 January 2026
The Minister for Justice and Home Affairs has welcomed the lodging of key legislation as part of
the ongoing work to support the Government of Jersey’s priority to end violence towards women
and girls.
Welcoming the lodging, Deputy Mary Le Hegarat, said: “I am delighted to announce the lodging
of five new laws designed to strengthen the ability of the criminal justice system to address
crimes associated with violence against women and girls.”
The five new laws are:
- The Draft Sexual Offences (Jersey) Amendment Law 202-;
- The Draft Harassment and Stalking (Jersey) Law 202-;
- The Draft Domestic Abuse (Jersey) Amendment Law 202-;
- The Draft Crime (Strangulation) (Jersey) Law 202-; and
- The Draft Crime (Public Order) (Jersey) Amendment Law 202-.
Deputy Le Hegarat added: "This package of legislation provides a robust framework from which
we will be able to hold perpetrators of intimate image abuse, stalking, strangulation and threats
of sexual violence to account and creates meaningful protection for victims of these crimes.
“It also introduces new landmark protections for victims of stalking and domestic abuse, so
that we can put strong safeguards in place before a conviction has been secured.
"Together, these laws allow for earlier intervention so that the criminal justice system can
intervene and prevent further violence before the behaviour of dangerous perpetrators can
escalate.
"These new laws also support the Government of Jersey’s commitment to implement the
recommendations of the VAWG Taskforce, representing the completion of five further
recommended actions. This means that the Government of Jersey has now completed a total of
35 of the recommended actions of the Taskforce.”
For further detail about the laws which have been lodged, see: States Assembly | Propositions, Amendments, Comments.
gov.je