I joined Plymouth women’s charity Trevi, and its Community Fundraiser and event organiser Mel Sevieri, on the Reclaim the Night March and was honoured to make a speech at the end. I spoke about the Government’s commitment to treat violence against women and girls as an epidemic, rather than an inevitability like the last government did.

This Labour Government has taken the steps to make sure that this issue is at the forefront of our thinking, such as having the first ever Minister for Safeguarding and Violence Against Women and Girls to tackle this problem head on. We have pledged to have domestic abuse specialists in 999 control rooms across the country, making spiking a specific criminal offence, barring all with a history of domestic abuse from the police service and automatic suspensions if officers are investigated for domestic abuse and sexual offences, among other commitments.

There’s lots of work still to do, but we will do it. I am encouraged by grassroots movements and charities like Trevi who are helping victims, and its hundreds of women, men and children coming out in the cold to be on the right side of history.