The Domestic Abuse Bill says abusive behaviour is:

Behaviour that is violent, threatening or intimidating

Image source, Laura Dodsworth

Behaviour whose purpose is one of the following:

• making a partner dependent or subordinate
• isolating a partner from friends, relatives or other sources of support
• controlling, regulating or monitoring a partner's day-to-day activities
• depriving a partner of, or restricting, freedom of action
• frightening, humiliating, degrading or punishing a partner.

The offence is aggravated if any of the behaviour is directed at a child or witnessed by them.

Rhoda Grant says children are often used as weapons in domestic abuse cases.

She calls for further protections to protect children, suggesting an abusive parent should not have access to their child unless it has been proven they no longer pose a risk.

"The rule of thumb must be no contact because of the damage it causes to the child."

She expresses concern about the different outcomes which could occur if cases are heard at non-specialist courts compared to specialist courts.

She calls for victims to be informed is exclusion orders come to an end.

"We in the Labour party support this Bill," Ms Grant concludes.

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Labour MSP Rhoda Grant says people don't see the years of psychological abuse a victim has suffered.

Ms Grant says this type of behaviour is as devastating as physical abuse and it can be so subtle the victim will not realise it is happening and it could be down to friends and family to spot it.

She says there are conditions to ensure a falling out or disagreement will not be captured by this offence.

The Labour MSP says the Bill looks at the impact of domestic abuse on children, but it does not go far enough.

That is why she welcomes the strenghening of the legislation by her colleague Claire Baker.

Liam Kerr notes recorded reports of domestic abuse are rising because of more reporting of a previously hidden crime.

The offence is expected to increase reporting between 2% and 10%, he says.

The Bill will create additional costs for the justice system, police and prisons, Mr Kerr warns, and he urges the Scottish government to consider this when looking at resourcing.

Domestic abuse victims having to recount their case multiple times is an issue, argues Mr Kerr, suggesting the government explore a one family, one sheriff approach.

He says more must be done to support victims and he agrees that the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Bill achieves what is required.

Tory MSP Liam Kerr says he of course speaks in favour of the passing of the Domestic Abuse Bill.

Mr Kerr says his party welcomes the offence of coercive, controlling or psychological behaviour.

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Mr Kerr welcomes the widening of the child aggravation introduced by the minister.

The Tory MSP says the Law Society said the law must be easily understood by all concerned.

This is a very important point, he says, adding on average a woman suffers 22 incidents of domestic abuse before they report it.

Mr Matheson says: "This is a momentous day as our laws will be changed in a way that reflects the experience that all too many women have suffered in terms of domestic abuse.

"While I am under no illusion that laws alone can address the issue of domestic abuse, laws do have a key role to play and this Bill will, once implemented, allow our justice system to deal more appropriately with domestic abuse."

Mr Matheson highlights the improvements made thanks to Scottish Women's Aid and other stakeholders.

Thanks to organisations representing children, the scope of the child aggravation at stage 2 was widened says the minister.

Image source, Laura Dodsworth

Aggravation can be proven if a reasonable person would consider that the perpetrator’s course of behaviour, or an incident forming part of that course of behaviour, would be likely to adversely affect a child who lives with the victim or perpetrator, he states.

Mr Matheson says: "The offence modernises the criminal law to reflect our understanding of how victims experience domestic abuse.

"It does this by providing for a specific offence that is intended to be comprehensive so that the abuse that be prosecuted as a single offence, ensuring that the court considers the totality of the abuse that it is alleged the victim has experienced.

"It will enable the court to consider both behaviour which would be criminal under the existing law, like assault and threats, and psychological abuse and coercive and controlling behaviour that can be difficult to prosecute using the existing law."

He says perpetrators may also try to exert control over every aspect of their partner’s life such as:

• Preventing contact with family or friends or checking and controlling their use of their phone or social media;
• Stopping them from attending work or college
• Making unreasonable demands about food preparation or housekeeping

The cabinet secretary details harrowing behaviour:

Behaviour intended to humiliate or degrade their partner such as:

• Abusive name calling
• Sharing of private information
• Being made to eat food off of floor or from pet dishes

Mr Matheson pays tribute to Lesley Thomson who, as the solicitor general, led from the front in publicly calling for a new criminal law approach on domestic abuse.

Ms Thomson has said that in her experience of prosecuting domestic abuse, the way that the existing criminal law focused on individual incidents of assault or threatening or abusive behaviour was misguided, says the minister.

The justice secretary says: "This is because it did not reflect the way that victims actually experience domestic abuse, as an ongoing course of abusive behaviour that is sustained over time, and not simply as a few isolated incidents."

This highlighted a gap in the law when someone behaves in a highly controlling, manipulative and abusive way towards their partner over a long period of time without using physical violence.

Women and men from all over the globe who have been sexually harassed have been sharing their stories across social media using the hashtag "me too" to show the magnitude of sexual assault.

It follows further allegations of rape against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.

Since the allegations surfaced many high profile names have used social media to highlight the problem of sexual assault, some also detailing the harassment they've endured.

Image source, Reuters

The hashtag, #MeToo, gained momentum after actress Alyssa Milano asked victims of sexual assault to come forward in a show of solidarity.

Many other social media users shared stories of the abuse they had suffered. One Twitter user who wanted to remain anonymous posted: "I was 19. He plied me with alcohol, forced a tongue kiss and touched my chest. I blamed myself for being drunk. #MeToo."

Mr Matheson says: "#MeToo, which is shining a light on the experiences of all too many women across the world, only demonstrates further the need for this Bill."

Image source, Laura Dodsworth

A bill to criminalise psychological domestic abuse is expected to be passed later, with some campaigners saying it "could change Scotland forever".

The Domestic Abuse bill, external, which has wide backing, creates a specific offence of "abusive behaviour in relation to a partner or ex-partner".

This includes psychological abuse such as coercive and controlling behaviour as well as violence.

Critics claimed it could be difficult to gather sufficient evidence.

However, Dr Marsha Scott, the chief executive of Scottish Women's Aid, said she was "excited" that the Scottish Parliament was about to pass the bill.

Read more here.

Image source, Laura Dodsworth

Mr Matheson says attitudes towards domestic abuse have changed considerably.

He says victims are more confident that they will be taken seriously and more willing to come forward to the police, the true scale of domestic abuse in Scotland has been made more apparent.

The minister says: "In 2016/17, nearly 59,000 domestic abuse incidents were reported to the police."

This is likely to be a significant under-estimate he says.

Justice Secretary Michael Matheson says: "I applaud the courage of the individuals who shared their own personal experiences of suffering domestic abuse with the Justice Committee, to assist their consideration of the Bill and help this Parliament gain a fuller understanding of what it is actually like to experience domestic abuse."

Image source, Laura Dodsworth

Justice Secretary Michael Matheson will now lead the final debate on the Domestic Abuse Bill.