To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is his Department's policy towards the monitoring of crimes of violence against lesbians and gay men; and if he will make a statement.

The monitoring of crimes of violence against lesbians and gay men is, in common with many other types of crime, a matter for individual chief officers. For example, I understand that the Metropolitan police have identified four divisions in which specific monitoring of such attacks is being undertaken on a pilot basis with a view to developing good practice. Attacks on lesbians and gay men are as unacceptable as any other incidents of violence against individuals, and I have every confidence in the determination and ability of the police to protect all members of the public.