My Tory MP husband raped me while I slept and screamed abuse at our new-born baby

 

[Kate Kniveton suffered a decade of abuse at the hands of her husband(Image: Derby Telegraph)

As violence against women and girls reaches epidemic levels with police receiving a domestic abuse call every 30 seconds, one woman is telling her deeply personal story and making it her mission to stand up for victims of domestic abuse.]

When Power Becomes a Weapon: Kate Kniveton’s Harrowing Escape from Abuse

Kate Kniveton, former MP for Burton, has stepped forward with extraordinary courage to share a decade of abuse at the hands of her then‑husband and Tory MP Andrew Griffiths. She revealed how he raped her while she was sleeping, used coercive control, and even screamed abuse at their newborn—while expecting the public to stay silent about him because of his power and position.(The Guardian)

In 2021, a family court judge concluded that on the balance of probabilities Griffiths had repeatedly coerced and raped Kate during their marriage. The court found he had also physically assaulted her, used controlling behaviour, and threatened to leave her homeless and without money.(The Guardian)

[Kate Kniveton with Andrew Griffiths who was the life and soul of the party]

Unusually, Kate waived her right to anonymity in these judgments so that the truth could be told. She later defeated Griffiths politically, winning the seat at the 2019 election and becoming the Conservative MP in his place.(Wikipedia)

In February 2024, the High Court barred Griffiths from any direct contact with their child in the "reasonably short term," ruling that contact would only be allowed via letters. The judge cited Griffiths’s ongoing denial of the full extent of his actions and his failure to understand the impact on the child and on Kate herself.(BBC)

Despite this being a rare legal victory, Kate describes the personal cost as immense. She spent years fighting not just against her abuser but through a legal system that exposed her to repeated emotional trauma. She’s now campaigning in Parliament to reform family courts, demanding a presumption of no contact with children when domestic abuse has been proven.(BBC)

[Andrew Griffiths married Kate in 2013Dr Charlotte Proudman, who was Kate's barrister in the family court, explains in the film, "It's very common, even when there are convictions for domestic abuse offences, for a parent to be granted regular unsupervised contact with their child."]

Kate testified that she was “dangerously close” to being let down by the courts. She argued that it should not be exceptional to protect children from parents found to have been abusive.(BBC)

Poll:
Should the law be changed so proven abusers automatically lose contact rights with their children?

• Yes—safety first

• No—not always fair

• Unsure—depends on case

I feel Kate’s story shows how domestic abuse can happen behind a façade of respectability—even in politics. Her bravery in exposing what happened—and fighting the courts afterward—deserves recognition. It is a vital reminder that power should never protect abusers nor silence survivors.

Add tags: #DomesticAbuse #FamilyCourtReform #KateKniveton #AndrewGriffiths

Read also our next story to keep following this developing campaign for family law reforms and to engage further in real conversations within the community.

Source: BBC News, The Guardian, BBC West Midlands (BBC, Reddit, BBC)