GM Police and Crime Commissioner calls on Home Secretary to ban FGM practitioner from entering the country

I Stand Against Female Genital Mutilation

Greater Manchester Mayor and Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd has called on Home Secretary Amber Rudd to ban an FGM practitioner from entering the UK.

Speaking out in support of the Metropolitan Police, which is understood to have applied for legal support to prevent a Sierra Leonean woman from entering the country, Mr Lloyd said:
“Female genital mutilation is an abhorrent, barbaric practice. To allow someone into this country with a ‘celebrated’ reputation for carrying out this extreme physical abuse, dangerously legitimises the practice.

“To condone the presence of such a high profile practitioner into this country, flies in the face of all the good work that has been done by many organisations, including the police to raise awareness of this brutal practice and the harm it causes. Female genital mutilation is not a question of consent. It is butchery and abuse, serving absolutely no purpose.

“I fully support the Met Police in their calls for this ban, and will be writing to Home Secretary Amber Rudd urging her to take action.”

Just last week, the Home Affairs Select Committee report ‘Female genital mutilation: abuse unchecked’, ranked Manchester fourth in a table of local authorities with the highest number of newly recorded instances of female genital mutilation.

The Greater Manchester Female Genital Mutilation Forum is made up of partner agencies across Greater Manchester’s 10 boroughs, including the Police and Crime Commissioner, Greater Manchester Police, local authorities, health and voluntary organisations. Its members work together to tackle this hugely complex and sensitive issue.

Work is underway to improve the existing ‘fgm protocol’ which sets out how Greater Manchester frontline professionals respond to the practice so that everyone has a clear, coordinated response should they suspect female genital mutilation has or is likely to take place.

Plans are also in place for improving support for children who have been subjected to female genital mutilation, so that police and health interventions are underpinned by practical and emotional support for the child.

Greater Manchester Police has delivered training around female genital mutilation, actively engaging with communities to highlight the health and social consequences, as well as the illegalities. Officers have also carried out targeted work at Manchester’s airport in collaboration with the UK Border Agency to seek out any victims or families intending to carry out this abuse abroad.

If you’ve been affected by female genital mutilation, or you’re worried about someone else, find help and advice at www.gmvictims.org.uk/fgm