The time to act is now. We need to keep the pressure and momentum going. Parliament has settled after Brexit meaning there is some traction in the UK around stalking laws, with an announcement due imminently from the Prime Minister Theresa May and following the Home Office consultation for a reform of the stalking laws in England & Wales. Northern Ireland are also looking into this and calling for new measures around stalking. This was discussed in a minster review on the 12th September 2016 bravely Brenda Hale MLA and Claire Bailey MLA shared their own experiences. Responding to the debate Justice Minister Claire Sugden said she was minded to consider fresh legislation; “As a Justice Minister, I am keen to ensure that the criminal law in Northern Ireland is fit for purpose and that we learn from the experiences of other jurisdictions, where laws make a difference for the better” Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK which does not have specific laws to protect victims of stalking, the 1997 Protection from Harassment (NI) Order does not go far enough. There needs to be a proper legislative framework in place in order to make arrests and prosecute offenders. Laura Richards – Founder of Paladin the National Stalking Advocacy says: "We are working closely with Paul Frew, the Chairman of the Justice Committee in Northern Ireland, who, along with Brenda Hale MLA gave victims of stalking a voice in Northern Ireland for the first time last week. We hope the Justice Minister is listening and creates an offence of stalking and understands the importance of a register for serial stalkers. These dangerous fixated perpetrators should be on the same register as sex offenders. It will save lives and money. We welcome the debate in Northern Ireland. This is significant progress. We expect an announcement soon from the PM about the new orders and register for stalkers in England and Wales we have been campaigning for. Thank you for your support thus far but there's more to do and we need your help." Laura blogs regularly around these issues her site can be found here: www.laurarichards.co.uk Laura has tirelessly campaigned alongside John and Penny parents of Jane Clough who was murdered by her abusive ex-partner and other survivors to get these changes put into place. England and Wales implemented the new stalking law on 25 November 2012 however there are further recommendations to the government to strengthen this still. The Paladin NSAS Home Office briefing document with the recommendations can be found here: http://paladinservice.co.uk/serial-perpetrator-register-and-order/ Crucially please also continue to support Paladin National Stalking Advocacy with their life saving work. The Just Giving page can be found here: https://campaign.justgiving.com/charity/paladin-nsas/lilycampaign Stalking is not a joke. It is considered by some as murder in slow motion. It steals lives and take lives. Please support the campaign by sharing this petition and donating. Thank you for all of your support so far however we are not there yet and must continue to push for change whilst still continuing to support victims/survivors of this heinous crime. Public support for this campaign has been overwhelming with over 127000 signatures which will be presented to Government, together we can do this! Thank you Zoe Dronfield Survivor & Paladin Ambassador #justiceforjane #serialregisterneeded #murderinslowmotion