United Nations Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment CAT/C/GBR/CO/6 Distr.: General 7 June 2019 Original: English Committee against Torture Concluding observations on the sixth periodic report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland* 1. The Committee against Torture considered the sixth periodic report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (CAT/C/GBR/6 and Corr.1) at its 1740th and 1743rd meetings (see CAT/C/SR.1740 and 1743), held on 7 and 8 May 2019, and adopted the present concluding observations at its 1754th meeting, held on 16 May 2019. A. Introduction 2. The Committee expresses its appreciation to the State party for accepting the simplified reporting procedure, as this allows for a more focused dialogue between the State party and the Committee. 3. The Committee appreciates having had the opportunity to engage in a constructive dialogue with the State party’s delegation, and the responses provided to the questions and concerns raised during the consideration of the report. B. Positive aspects 4. The Committee welcomes the State party’s initiatives to revise its legislation in areas of relevance to the Convention, including: (a) The criminalization of forced marriage in England and Wales under the Antisocial Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014; (b) The enactment of the Serious Crime Act 2015 in England and Wales, which, inter alia, makes controlling or coercive behaviour in intimate or familial relationships a new offence and enables the courts to issue protection orders to safeguard potential or actual victims of female genital mutilation; and the enactment of the Violence against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015, the Justice Act (Northern Ireland) 2015, which introduces domestic violence protection notices and orders, and the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018; (c) The enactment of the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015 and the publication in 2017 of the Trafficking and Exploitation Strategy for Scotland; and the adoption of the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Criminal Justice and Support for Victims) Act (Northern Ireland) 2015; (d) The introduction of the Limitation (Childhood Abuse) (Scotland) Act 2017. * Adopted by the Committee at its sixty-sixth session (23 April–17 May 2019). GE.19-09236(E) 

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