FM considers call for non-fatal strangulation law

First Minister John Swinney

First Minister John Swinney says he is considering calls to make non-fatal strangulation (NFS) a standalone offence.

The mother of an Aberdeen University student who took her own life after being choked by her abusive boyfriend has launched a petition calling for the law change.

Swinney described NFS as an "abhorrent act", but said it already carried "very serious penalties" under the common law of assault.

He was urged to consider the petition by SNP colleague Michelle Thomson, who said the "the common law route is not working".

Scotland is the only country in the UK that has yet to introduce specific legislation to address non-fatal strangulation, after England and Wales made it a crime in 2022, followed by Northern Ireland in 2023.

At First Minister's Questions, Thomson said NFS was a "known, serious and growing" problem.

"Each year that passes sees more violence, strokes and deaths," she told MSPs.

"We cannot treat [NFS] like common assault because it's far more complicated, far more complex and far more dangerous".

Thomson said "doing nothing more is not an option".

She called for better data collection on NFS, an awareness programme and a clearer prosecution route.

Michelle Thomson says the government has to act

Swinney said he recognised the significant physical and mental impact NFS had on victims and their families.

He said he had met with Fiona Drouet to discuss her petition.

Her daughter Emily was 18 years old when she took her own life several days after being choked and slapped by her ex-boyfriend.

The first minister told MSPs that conduct amounting to NFS was already a criminal offence under the common law of assault, which carries a maximum penalty of life in prison.

He said the government "constantly" keeps this law under review.

"If there was to be a standalone offence put in place we would need to be confident there is a gap in the law and we will be giving this proposal serious consideration," he told parliament.

Swinney said he did not want to suggest there is anything other than "very serious penalties" for NFS under current laws.

He also vowed to "lead from the front" in a campaign for boys and men to improve their behaviour.

Danger warnings

Thomson has proposed amending the Criminal Justice Modernisation and Abusive Domestic Behaviour Reviews Bill, which is at stage one of three in its journey through parliament, to include provisions against strangulation.

Conservative MSP Tess White cited comments from Professor Cath White, medical director for the Institute for Addressing Strangulation (IFAS), who said that after six to eight seconds of NFS a person can lose consciousness.

After 15 seconds, the bladder becomes incontinent, followed by the bowels after 30 seconds, Prof White told MSPs at an event last week.

She added that a person can become brain dead within four minutes.

According to ONS figures in 2023 strangulation was the second most common method of murder of women in England and Wales.

In Scotland there were nine female strangulation victims in 2022/23 - making it the joint third most common method.

A recent survey of 16 to 34 year olds in the UK, by the IFAS, found that more than a third (35%) of respondents reported being strangled or choked at least once during consensual sex.

Simon Brown, president of the Scottish Solicitors Bar Association, argued that while NFS was serious and should be criminalised, there did not need to be a specific offence for it.

He told BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime: "In practice it would be viewed almost identically to how assault is viewed just now. The standard of proof would probably be much the same.

"I can't see how you would word a statute to make it easier to prove a crime, the difficulties would be the same."