Labour MSP Mary Fee asks if men wait longer to report abuse.

Ms Waugh says "yes" men do wait longer and sometimes there is a perception that, if they report it, it makes them less of a man.

she says there is a fear of going to a service and not being taken seriously.

Ms Waugh says the narrative of violence against women by men is often the only one out there.

"There is violence against men out there as well and it is equally important," she says.

Image source, bbc

Alison Waugh from Abused Men in Scotland says men often say the police are aware of what is going on.

Ms Waugh says she heard from a man yesterday who suffered coercive control at the hands of his wife.

She says he says abuse became normalised so when he talked about it he minimised the abuse.

Ms Waugh says in both court appearance there was a not proven verdict because he did not seem affected enough or had not shown enough emotion.

She calls for training for sheriffs and judges to be trained in this area.

Image source, Abused Men in Scotland

Taken from the Abused Men in Scotland , external(AMIS) website:

"AMIS is a non-profit organisation established in 2010 to address the gap in service provision for men experiencing domestic abuse.

"We provide direct support to men experiencing domestic abuse, as well as helping to improve mainstream service responses and campaigning for further inclusion of male victims in the wider narrative on domestic abuse."

Labour MSP Mary Fee asks if male victims of domestic abuse may be similar to victims of elder abuse in being under-reported and not taken seriously.

Ms Fee says the majority of support organisations are female based and asks if there is work to be done to raise awareness.

Alison Waugh from Abused Men in Scotland says "yes" and that there must be training that acknowledges the experience that many men do have.

Ms Waugh says: "We need to stress that coercive control does affect men".

She says that it is being called gendered-abuse because it is about partners but that it affects a "huge number of men and their children" and it must be taken seriously.

Image source, bbc

Green MSP John Finnie says some of this could be picked up as assault or domestic abuse.

Mr Finnie says gender based violence is predominately about men against women.

Ronnie Barnes from Action on Elder Abuse Scotland says he agrees but that we would miss a trick if the Bill is not more specific as to who is covered by this and who the perpetrators could be.

Green MSP John Finnie asks for comments on the non-visibility of domestic violence as a person get older.

Ronnie Barnes from Action on Elder Abuse Scotland says it is under-reported.

Mr Barnes says "people are dying at the hands of their families and other cruel perpetrators."

He says it is being under-reported in the media and a zero-tolerance approach should be taken.

Mr Barners says the law must be robust enough to deal with these situation.

Image source, bbc

Ronnie Barnes from Action on Elder Abuse Scotland says not to include older people in this Bill would be a grave mistake because the law as it stands does not cover them.

Mr Barnes says Scotland has good adult support and protection, but he says when criminal behaviour occurs Scotland is less good.

He says any familial situation where people are care givers and have responsibilities can be difficult.

Mr Barnes says people do get abused and violated and it can't be softened away by saying its due to the circumstance.

He says: "I'm saying abuse is abuse let's deal with it and call it what it is."

Alan McCloskey from Victim Support Scotland says there is other legislation to protect older people and that this bill is about domestic violence.

Mr McCloskey says that if the Bill is widened then is could lose traction.

Image source, Victim Support Scotland homepage

Taken from the Victim Support Scotland website, external:

"Victim Support Scotland provides support and information services to victims and witnesses of crime in Scotland.

We’re proud to serve victims and witnesses in Scotland by campaigning for their rights and helping to improve their experiences of the criminal justice system."

Here is the submission to the committee by Victim Support Scotland. , external

Image source, bbc

Kevin Kane from Victim Support Scotland says his group supports all victims.

Mr Kane says it is important this Bill is restricted to partners and ex-partners.

He says 44% of female homicide victims are killed by a partner and an ex-partner which highlights the gender specific nature of the crime.

Image source, Action on Elder Abuse

Taken from the Action on Elder Abuse Scotland website, external:

"Action on Elder Abuse (AEA) Scotland works to protect vulnerable older people from harm and abuse. We support those experiencing (or at risk of) harm and abuse, as well as raising awareness and advocating effective prevention.

"AEA Scotland was established in May 2015 to provide a tailored service to older people, their families/carers and practitioners in Scotland. Our work is be very much in line with Scotland’s unique adult support and protection agenda, taking an inclusive and partnership approach as much as possible."

Here is the submission to the committee by Elder Abuse Scotland., external

Ronnie Barnes from Action on Elder Abuse Scotland says people find themselves living with their children and their children's partners and therefore the Bill should not just be about perpetrators being partners or ex-partners.

Mr Barnes says not enough priority is given in the justice system to convictions for perpetrators who have abused older people.

He says "if this is not the right Bill then what is" and that the abuse against older people cannot be ignored.

Mr Barnes says the criminal justice system does not take it seriously.

Image source, bbc

Committee convener Margaret Mitchell introduces the second panel of witnesses:

• Alison Waugh, trustee, Abused Men in Scotland
• Ronnie Barnes, trustee, Action on Elder Abuse Scotland
• Alan McCloskey, director of operations, Victim Support Scotland
• Kevin Kane, parliamentary, policy and research officer, Victim Support Scotland

Girijamba Polubothu from Shakti Women's Aid says it is difficult to prove coercive control and it requires more listening and more investigation.

Dr Marsha Scott from Scottish Women's Aid says "we have this notion, why doesn't she just leave?"

Dr Scott says there is a perception of telling young women that this is the person they are supposed to be.

"It is about being ambitious for women and girls," she says.

Committee convener Margaret Mitchell thanks the witnesses and ends the first evidence session.

Image source, bbc

Committee convener Margaret Mitchell asks how the coercive behaviour element of the Bill is triggered.

Ms Mitchell asks if the offence can stand alone.

Heather Williams from Scottish Women's Aid says absolutely and she says many victims say they don't think they can be helped because they have not been hit.

Ms Williams says a lot of health visitors and social workers are really good at spotting a high level of control and can see change due to coercive control.

She says a family friend or family member may notice the coercive control.

SNP MSP Stewart Stevenson asks whose reasonableness is it because there is the abuser's perception of reasonableness the perpetrator's view of reasonableness and society's view of reasonableness.

Mr Stevenson says the victim may also suffer from mental illness and may not be able to determine reasonableness.

Dr Marsha Scott from Scottish Women's Aid says "we are talking about the reasonableness of the people in the court room" to determine whether the behaviour is reasonable.

Heather Williams from Scottish Women's Aid says: "There is not enough work being done with perpetrators of abuse."

Ms Williams says if the perpetrator's behaviour is not addressed they will move on to another partner and be abusive again.

Dr Marsha Scott from Scottish Women's Aid says there should be better use of technology such as electronic monitoring.

Dr Scott says this would support policing and help to build evidence.

She says it would also add reassurance to women.

"The opportunity to support policing with technology would be fruitful," she says.

Image source, Getty Images

SNP MSP Fulton Macgregor asks how non-harassment orders could be made more robust.

Heather Williams from Scottish Women's Aid agrees that the orders are not effective as they should be all the time.

Ms Williams cites a case where the non-harassment order had been breached but nothing happened when the case went back to court.

She says the system does not police harassment well when subtle behaviour is used by the perpetrator.

Ms Williamsn says with the new legislation that type of behaviour would be covered.

She says people can be intimidated in lots of ways and she says the charity uses the example of Hilary Clinton and Donald Trump debating when Trump invaded her space.

Dr Marsha Scott from Scottish Women's Aid says recklessness is not a new concept and it is a mechanism that comes easy to hand.

Dr Scott says it is a good tool to create a robust case that abuse has happened without having to prove harm.