National Day of Memory for Victims of Honour-Based Abuse

That this House recognises the National Day of Memory for Victims of Honour-Based Abuse on 14 July as a day of remembrance, reflection and renewed commitment to ending honour-based abuse; marks with profound sadness that this year Shafilea Ahmed would have celebrated her 40th birthday, and remembers her life, taken at 17 years old, as a powerful reminder of the devastating consequences of honour-based abuse and the enduring need for action; pays tribute to the victim-survivors, bereaved families and campaigners whose courage has driven progress; warmly welcomes the Government's introduction of a statutory definition of honour-based abuse, recognising this long-overdue, landmark achievement as one that specialist organisations, survivors and parliamentarians have sought for many years; believes that this definition represents a new chapter in improving safeguarding agencies’ identification, understanding and response to honour-based abuse; notes with concern evidence from leading charity Karma Nirvana, which delivers the Home Office-commissioned National Honour-Based Abuse Helpline, that reports of honour-based abuse continue to rise, demonstrating the scale of the abuse and increasing confidence among victims to seek help; further recognises that greater awareness and improved identification are likely to lead to more victims coming forward; and therefore calls on the Government to ensure that police, health services, education, children's and adult social care, the justice system and safeguarding professionals receive appropriate training to implement the statutory definition consistently, and that specialist by-and-for services are provided with sustainable, long-term funding to ensure every victim and survivor can access expert, lifesaving support when they need it.