To ask the Minister for Women pursuant to her answer of 3 March 2003, Official Report, column 804W, on domestic violence, if she will make a statement on the outcome of her correspondence with the Home Secretary regarding the central collection of domestic violence statistics. [103829]

[holding answer 24 March 2003]: My correspondence with my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary on this topic has not yet reached a conclusion.A key issue for the collection of domestic violence statistics is under-reporting, and an inter-personal violence module was included in the 2001 British Crime Survey to obtain more detailed information on domestic violence using self-completion questionnaires. The preparation of a report on these findings is currently under way.