Catcalling and street harassment offenders could face two years in prison under new UK laws

12 December, 2022

Tory minister Greg Clark. Credit: Leon Neal via Getty Images

The UK’s government will be cracking down on perpetrators of public sexual harassment (such as catcalling), with newly proposed laws making it punishable by up to two years imprisonment.

As reported by the Independent, the new legislation was brought forward by Tory minister Greg Clark, with vocal support coming from Labour and Home Secretary Suella Braverman. Public sexual harassment is already a crime, but has not been defined as an actionable offense in its own right. 

The proposed legislation – which was unopposed when read for a second time last Friday (December 9) – aims to make the law “clearer” for both the public and persecutors, hopefully emboldening women to report when they’ve been victimised, and deterring would-be harassers from targeting them. Clark looks to move the legislation forward by having the government amend the 1986 Public Order Act.

Such an amendment would increase the severity of punishments handed to perpetrators found guilty, upping the maximum legal sentence by 300 per cent from six months to two years. To enforce it, Clark has proposed that a new offence be defined in the law, targeting perpetrators who commit “intentional harassment, alarm or distress” on the grounds of a victim’s sex.

Per the aforementioned report, these acts would include “threatening, abusive or insulting” words or behaviour, including both written displays and those acted out in person. 

The government reportedly looked to expound on this with an outline of “example behaviours” – which included making “obscene” gestures or comments towards a target, as well as stalking or “driving slowly alongside” them – but scrapped this plan out of fears such a list would be “prescriptive” and lose relevance too quickly.

Clark’s primary aim, he told the House of Commons, was to “help change the culture of society” in regards to the way it views sexual harassment at large. He’s quoted as saying, “I actually hope there will be few prosecutions under the law ever required but it is important that the law is there.”

In a tweet posted on Friday, Clark wrote: “Why should a woman feel less confident when walking on our streets than a man? Delighted that my Bill to protect women and girls from public sexual harassment passed its 2nd Reading in the House of Commons this afternoon.”

Labour praised his proposition as a “first step in the right direction”, while Braverman said in a statement published by the Independent: “Every woman should feel safe to walk our streets without fear of harassment or violence. And that is why we are supporting this Bill to introduce a specific offence on public sexual harassment.

“It’s a complex issue and we’ve carefully considered the arguments, taking into account a range of views. We are putting the needs of victims at the heart of our decision, which will mean the criminals who commit these acts face the consequences they deserve.”

Also throwing her weight behind the bill was Home Office minister Sarah Dines, who described it as “excellent” and noted that it should not be considered “anti-men”, but rather “pro-safety”. She further explained: “It is the most basic responsibility of Government to keep our public places safe. Everyone should be able to walk our streets without fear of violence or harassment.”

In a statement of his own, Charlie Doyle – an assistant chief constable with the British Transport Police – said: “No woman should be subjected to harassment or intimidation as they travel and we will always welcome any extra help in bringing more offenders to justice.

“We have always taken reports of sexual harassment extremely seriously, however I hope the proposed legislation will reinforce our clear message to perpetrators that it simply won’t be tolerated. We know that all forms of sexual harassment are underreported to police and I hope this increased awareness will encourage more victims to come forward and tell us about what’s happened to them.”

It’s reported that the bill will be further examined by MPs “at a later date”. It can be read in full here.

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