Holly’s Law campaign gains momentum after “very positive” minister meeting
Lincolnshire mum’s push for animal abuse register sees government commit to further work
A campaign for a new law in memory of a murdered Lincolnshire woman has taken a significant step forward after what’s been described as a “very positive” meeting with a government minister.
Annette Bramley met with the Minister for Violence Against Women and Girls, Jess Phillips, alongside South Holland and The Deepings MP John Hayes, to push for “Holly’s Law”.
The proposed law would introduce a national register of animal abusers - after Annette’s daughter, Holly, was murdered in Lincoln in 2023 by her husband, who had a history of animal cruelty.
Sir John said the minister was “very, very warm” and “very supportive” during the talks, and crucially, has committed to taking the idea further.
“The really important thing is she committed to go and do more work on how we can make this happen,” he said.
“That’s about as good as you can get from a ministerial meeting.”
The meeting focused on growing evidence of a link between animal cruelty and domestic abuse, something Sir John says was clearly recognised.
“The key thing is the correlation between animal cruelty and domestic violence,” he said.
“We were able to reinforce that with facts and figures.”
He also said the timing could be significant, with the government already reviewing how risk is assessed in domestic abuse cases.
“Our job now is to make sure this stays at the top of the agenda," he said.
The campaign has also secured cross-party backing, with senior Conservatives signalling their support, something Sir John says gives the proposal its “best possible chance” of becoming law.
For Annette, the campaign is about ensuring her daughter’s death leads to change, and helps protect others in the future.