Stalking Protection Act 2019

The Stalking Protection Act 2019 (c. 9) is an Act of Parliament put forward as a private member's bill by then Conservative MP Sarah Wollaston which creates a civil protection order to prevent stalking.^[1][2]

Stalking Protection Act 2019

Act of Parliament
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Long title	An Act to make provision for orders to protect persons from risks associated with stalking; and for connected purposes.
Citation	2019 c. 9
Introduced by	Dr. Sarah Wollaston (Commons) Baroness Bertin (Lords)
Territorial extent	England and Wales
Dates
Royal assent	15 March 2019
Commencement	20 January 2020
Other legislation
Relates to	Protection from Harassment Act 1997 Policing and Crime Act 2017
Status: Current legislation
History of passage through Parliament
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

Background

In 2012, the Government amended the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 to introduce two new stalking offences, however, there were little protections where the perpetrator is not a partner or ex-partner, with this act aiming to address these concerns.^[3]

The Crime Survey for England and Wales reports that more than 1 in 5 women and nearly 1 in 10 men aged 16 to 59 have been victims of stalking since the age of 16. In 2017 to 2018 there were 1,616 prosecutions commenced under stalking offences, with 73% related to domestic abuse.^[4]