Domestic abusers to be banned from shared home in crackdown

Domestic abuse offenders could be banned from the home they share with their victim partners under proposed new hardline proposals which have been set out by the Scottish Government.

Justice secretary Humza Yousaf. Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images

The protection orders could be imposed by the police and courts even without the offender having sought them in a tough new approach to “safeguard those at risk.”

Justice secretary Humza Yousaf launched a consultation on the orders yesterday after recent figures showed domestic abuse is on the rise in Scotland.

It came as he also announced that new measures to tackle domestic abuse – including psychological harm – will be introduced in Scotland at the start of April.

“The new protective orders could be used to keep those at risk of domestic abuse safe by giving the police and courts powers to remove suspected perpetrators from their home,” Mr Yousaf said yesterday.

“In contrast with existing civil measures such as interdicts and exclusion orders, the new protective orders we are consulting on would mean the person at risk is not required to make the application to the court themselves for one of these protective orders.

“This may be key to ensuring the safety of a person at risk where the effect of abuse is such that they are not in a position to initiate civil proceedings to remove the person putting them at risk from their home, because, for example, they are being controlled to such an extent that they could not initiate a court action.”

The measure is also seen as allowing victims time to seek advice other housing options and reduce the risk of them having to face homelessness to escape their perpetrator.

Research by Scottish Women’s Aid on homelessness and domestic abuse highlights that it a significant cause of homelessness in Scotland.

Scottish Women’s Aid chief executive Marsha Scott said yesterday; “We welcome this consultation and the recognition within it that women and their children, if any, face the double injustice of experiencing domestic abuse, and then too often being forced to leave their home, their belongings and even their communities to keep themselves safe. This simply isn’t fair.

Mr Yousaf also announced that separate powers under the Domestic Abuse Act, passed at Holyrood earlier this year, will come into force in April. This means the law on domestic abuse in Scotland now covers actions causing psychological harm as well as physical harm.