Rejected petition Allow women to carry pepper spray with a licence for personal protection

Women deserve the right to feel safe. We ask the government to allow a license for pepper spray for self-defence. Applicants would need background checks and safety training, with strict penalties for misuse. A regulated system would empower women to protect themselves while keeping the public safe.

More details

Every year in the UK, millions of women live in fear of harm in their own homes or on the streets. Around one in eight women experiences domestic abuse, sexual assault, or stalking in a single year.

These figures highlight a serious and persistent threat to women’s safety. Introducing a regulated licensing system for self-defence sprays would provide a measured, lawful means for women to protect themselves while maintaining strict public safety standards.

This petition was rejected

Why was this petition rejected?

There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue.

You are more likely to get action on this issue if you sign and share a single petition.

You may wish to sign the following petition, which calls for similar action:

Legalise pepper spray in England: https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/742673

We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.

Date submitted 28 October 2025
Get petition data (json format)

About petition data

The data shows the number of people who have signed the petition by country as well as in the constituency of each Member of Parliament. This data is available for all petitions on the site. It is not a list of people who have signed the petition. The only name that is shared on the site is that of the petition creator.