Lily Greenan

Published on Tuesday 19 August 2008 22:15

The manager of Scottish Women's Aid discusses proposals to ban men accused of assaulting their partners from drinking, as revealed in The Scotsman yesterday.

What do you think about the proposal?

Alcohol does not cause domestic abuse. Women's Aid works with many women whose partners are not drinkers. It's important that this proposal is not seen as some kind of magic bullet, a quick fix for domestic abuse.

Do you think it will be a success?

We think there are some problems with it. Special conditions can already be attached to bail orders, for example prohibiting a man from making contact with his partner while he is on bail. Failure by the police and/or courts to tackle bail breaches has left many women disillusioned with the bail system, and we question whether attaching "stop drinking" clauses will be any more enforceable or make women any safer.

What are the dangers of the plans?

That it reinforces the idea that alcohol causes domestic abuse, that if we tackle alcohol consumption we will prevent domestic abuse. We won't. The issue is more complex than that and needs a more holistic response.

Is this a step in the right direction?

What's positive is that it focuses attention on the behaviour of the perpetrator and puts the responsibility on them for changing that behaviour. Our concern would be if it suggests that tackling drinking on its own will change the abusive behaviour.

What did you think of the media coverage?

It's good to see discussion of these issues in the media. The coverage was reasonable and reflects the diverse range of views out there on this issue. This is an ongoing issue, and we expect the debate to continue.

What more can be done?

What we need now is a really clear public message from the Scottish Government that domestic abuse is unacceptable and that drinking is never an excuse.