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Additional funding required to deal with Domestic Abuse

The Law Society of England & Wales has warned that without additional funding the outcome of a public enquiry into domestic abuse will have litle impact.

Law Society president Christina Blacklaws said, "Sadly, domestic abuse is still a widespread problem throughout England and Wales - particularly for women - and costs the UK economy an estimated £66 billion a year."

"The bill has the potential to change millions of lives but without a significant cash injection, legislation alone is not enough to end domestic abuse."

In summary the draft bill details;

That children under 16 and 17 can be included in the statutory definition of domestic abuse.
An acknowledgement that economic abuse is a form of domestic abuse.
Bans the cross-examination of domestic abuse victims by their abuser.
The introduction of a domestic abuse commissioner.

From statistics provided by, "Women's Aid" in excess of four hundred referrals to refuges, in England, are declined every week. Details suggest that an average of two deaths a week occur after domestic abuse.

Christina commented, "Cuts to frontline services and the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (LASPO) have had a devastating effect on the support available to victims."

"Refuges are turning away hundreds of women every week and, due to legal aid criteria around shared property ownership, domestic abuse victims can find themselves both ineligible for legal aid and without housing.

"For the draft domestic abuse bill to be effective in its protection of victims, the government must put the necessary funding into legal aid, support services and policing and give domestic abuse victims the access to justice they so deserve."

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