Gavin Newlands MP support UK SAYS NO MORE Week to take a stand to prevent domestic abuse and sexual
On Wednesday 23 May, MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire and White Ribbon Ambassador, Gavin Newlands, pledged his support for UK SAYS NO MORE Week to take a stand against domestic abuse and sexual violence and to urge the Government to do more to prevent domestic violence in the UK.
UK SAYS NO MORE is a national campaign to raise awareness of domestic abuse and sexual violence across the UK. It is run by Hestia, London’s largest provider of domestic abuse refuges.
With over 140 coalition partners, UK SAYS NO MORE seeks to unite and strengthen a diverse community of members of the public and organisations nationwide to actively take a stand against domestic abuse and sexual violence.
The British Crime Survey has found that 1 in 4 women will be a victim of domestic abuse in their lifetime while 1 in 6 men will also be affected. Domestic abuse also accounts for 8% of all recorded crime within the United Kingdom. 950,000 children across the UK are affected by domestic abuse every year (SafeLives, 2014) and 79% of women reported leaving their partner because they feared for the safety of their children (Hestia, 2015). In addition, a study by Rape Crisis in 2016 found that there are 11 rapes an hour in the UK.
In UK SAYS NO MORE Week, which runs from 21st – 25th May 2018, Hestia are asking the public and politicians to take a stand. They are asking the Government to go further on measures to prevent domestic abuse and they are asking Parliamentarians to stand with them by signing a Charter on Prevention. This Charter asks for:
Responsibility for education and awareness to be enshrined in the role of the new Domestic Abuse Commissioner and for education around healthy relationships to spread into all walks of life. It will be incumbent on the new Commissioner, the Government and local authorities to make this happen.
Greater support for children who have witnessed or experienced domestic abuse. This can have a long term impact on children and more funding needs to be channelled into ensuring young people have access to mental health support.
Domestic abuse to be everyone’s business. In particular there needs be greater awareness raising amongst employers who can play a key role in supporting employees who are experiencing abuse. The employers ‘duty of care’ needs to be expanded to include their responsibilities in dealing with domestic abuse.
Gavin Newlands MP chairs the all-party parliamentary group for the White Ribbon Campaign – a group which encourages men to take a make a pledge to never commit, condone or ignore violence against women
Gavin Newlands MP, said:
“As a White Ribbon Ambassador, I am delighted to offer my support to this campaign and say the UK SAYS NO MORE to domestic abuse and violence against women and girls.
“The devastating effect domestic violence can have on people’s lives and their families is clear. The British Crime Survey has found that 1 in 4 women will be a victim of domestic abuse in their lifetime while 1 in 6 men will also be affected.
“Sadly, nearly 1 million children across the UK are also affected by domestic abuse every year and 79% of women reported leaving their partner because they feared for the safety of their children. In addition, a study by Rape Crisis in 2016 found that there are 11 rapes an hour in the UK. These are staggering figures and we must do everything we can to support victims of domestic violence but prevention is absolutely critical.
“I am proud to have signed the UK SAYS NO MORE Prevention Charter and I urge the UK Government to ensure that much more is done to support victims of domestic abuse but also, critically, to prevent domestic violence from taking place in the UK. Ending domestic violence is everyone’s business and we must do everything we can to achieve this goal.”