The Guardian has slapped an "Exclusive" label on its report that Josh Babarinde has called for a specific defence of domestic violence to be introduced.
This is a bad case of overselling, given that he appeared on Good Morning on 10 December to talk about the idea.
But there are encouraging developments in the report. Josh says he has received support from both Labour and Conservative MPs, and its claims that:
Officials are examining whether to change the way domestic violence crimes are recorded after a campaign by an MP who says the lack of a specific offence allows abusers to be freed early from jail.
The quote from a Ministry of Justice spokesperson at the end is less definite than this:
"Domestic abuse comes in many forms, not just physical. Under the current system, domestic abusers already face longer sentences as it is considered an aggravating factor in sentencing for a wide range of offences. However, the independent review of sentencing, led by David Gauke, has been tasked with looking at how best to address crimes of violence against women and girls in future."
The other day I heard David Blunkett quoted as saying this government has "hit the ground reviewing," but let's hope something good comes of this one.
Josh spoked movingly to the Guardian about his own childhood, saying he recalls violence as creating a "really lonely" home life:
"I would be upstairs in my room hearing an argument unfold, voices raised, shouts, screams, things smashed, and I would pull my covers over me and just sit crying. I didn’t know if my mum was OK."
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