Domestic Abuse Bill
“Legislation will transform the approach of the justice
system and other agencies to victims of
domestic abuse”
The purpose of the Bill is to:
-
Transform the response to domestic abuse to better
protect victims and their children, ensuring they have the
support they need and that offenders are brought to
justice.
The main benefits of the Bill would
be:
-
Changing the justice system so it better serves victims
of domestic abuse.
-
Reducing offending and re-offending.
-
Strengthening the support for victims and their children
provided by local authorities and other statutory
agencies.
The main elements of the Bill are:
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Creating a statutory definition of domestic abuse,
emphasising that domestic abuse is not just physical violence,
but can also be emotional, coercive or controlling, and
economic abuse.
-
Establishing in law the Domestic Abuse Commissioner to
stand up for victims and survivors, raise public awareness,
monitor the response of local authorities, the justice system
and other statutory agencies and hold them to account in
tackling domestic abuse.
-
Providing for a new Domestic Abuse Protection Notice and
Domestic Abuse Protection Order.
-
Creating a new domestic abuse offence in Northern Ireland
to criminalise controlling or coercive behaviour.
-
Creating a statutory presumption that victims of domestic
abuse are eligible for special measures in the criminal courts
(for example, to enable them to give evidence via a video
link).
-
55Placing the guidance supporting the Domestic Violence
Disclosure Scheme (“Clare’s Law”) on a statutory
footing.
-
Prohibiting perpetrators of abuse from cross-examining
their victims in person in the family courts.
-
Extending the extra-territorial jurisdiction of the UK
courts so that, where appropriate, UK nationals and residents
who commit certain violent and sexual offences outside the UK
may be brought to trial in the UK.
Territorial extent and application
-
The Bill's provisions would extend and apply in the main
to England and Wales, with a single provision applying to
England only.
-
Some provisions will extend and apply to Scotland or
Northern Ireland.
Key facts
-
The offence of controlling or coercive behaviour in an
intimate or family relationship was introduced in 2015. In
2018-19,1,177 such offences were charged and reached a first
hearing; an increase from 960 in 2017-18.
-
In the year ending March 2018, an estimated 2 million
adults aged 16 to 59 experienced domestic abuse (1.3 million
women and 695,000 men).
-
In the year ending March 2019, there was an increase in
the total number of domestic abuse-related offences recorded by
the police (up 22 per cent to 732,444). This rising trend is
thought to reflect factors related to reporting and recording
and does not provide a reliable indication of current
trends.
-
For the year ending March 2017, the cost of domestic
abuse for victims was estimated to be approximately £66 billion
in England and Wales (this includes physical and emotional
harms, lost output, health services and police costs).
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On 18 September 2019, Nicole Jacobs (former CEO of
Standing Together Against Domestic Violence) was appointed as
Designate Domestic Abuse Commissioner.
