GOVERNMENT plans to ratify a gender violence treaty has been described as “bittersweet” by campaigners as ministers seek to exclude migrant women from key protections. 

Over 80 women and human rights groups have signed a letter urging Home Secretary Priti Patel to ratify the Istanbul Convention, an international charter for the protection of women and girls, in full. 

It comes after Ms Patel confirmed in a written statement last month that the government is planning to pass the treaty into law by the end of July, a move described by campaigners as a “big step towards improved support for survivors, more effective prosecution and gender equality in the UK.”