But the party is particularly concerned about the impact of the rape clause in Northern Ireland where failure to report a crime is an offence punishable with a prison term. That is needed because the new benefit has yet to be rolled out in Northern Ireland. “The third-party professionals involved do not need to seek any evidence to confirm the circumstances,” the spokesman added, saying they did recognise the particular issues in Northern Ireland. Campaigners in Northern Ireland said they were extremely worried about the issue. Jan Melia, the chief executive of the Women’s Aid Federation Northern Ireland, welcomed Labour’s attempt to stop the “rape clause”.

Source: The Guardian July 23, 2017 09:33 UTC