Hansard

It is a great privilege to be able to speak in support of the bill. As politicians, we all have different areas of Scottish life that particularly affect us and impact on how we think forever after, having heard real-life stories. I will talk about the impact that some of those stories have had on me, and how the bill is an incredibly important piece of legislation for Parliament to pass today.

I have had meetings with groups including Rape Crisis Scotland and Scottish Women’s Aid. I work closely with groups in my constituency—for example, Waves (Women Against Violent Environments), and the domestic abuse integrated support—or DAISY—project in Castlemilk, that support victims of domestic abuse. I have heard their numerous stories and got to know the women and their children personally, which has highlighted to me the importance of the bill more than any briefing could possibly do.

Why is the bill important? It is hard for me to imagine, but having merely listened to those women, I can think about what it means to be abused by a partner. Now is the right time to show how some people’s lives could be changed for the better—as we hope they will, if the bill is passed—by telling the stories of some of the many women who have been brave enough to share what has happened to them.

I now know well a woman who moved to Ireland when she met the love of her life. She had a family and did everything that she could to make a life across the sea. Sadly, she was beaten and emotionally abused so badly that she had to flee her home and her life there, and try to survive while rebuilding a life back here in Scotland. That marvellous woman is now in her 70s and chairs a charity that she helped to form that supports women who are fleeing abuse. Through her work and care for others, she has been able to move on with her life.

I have heard from women stories of their having to flee in the night and of their not even being able to seek shelter with family because of stigma and blackmail, which are often tools that abusers cruelly use to control them. Language such as “No one will want you”, “I’ll find you” and “I’ll hurt the people who take you in” can have a devastating impact on women. Those are just some of the many phrases that are commonly used to prevent them from escaping the hell in which they exist.

Women are forced to flee into the unknown—to boarding houses and safe houses—often with small children and very little in the way of clothing. I cannot tell members how it breaks my heart to hear of women making their children sleep with their coats and shoes on in case the man of the house comes home and the abuse starts for no reason and without warning.

I have been delighted to hear the focus on psychological abuse in the debate. We all know that abuse is not just physical: it can be sexual, emotional and—almost always—psychological. Many women do not even realise that they are victims. That is why I am so pleased that recognition of psychological abuse is part of the Government’s proposal.

Controlling behaviour can often be hard to detect at first. Perpetrators may use psychological tactics to ensure that their partner feels as though she is not good enough and her self-esteem is so damaged that the relationship becomes like an emotional prison, with no escape. For me, the impact on children is one of the most damaging aspects and one of the reasons why I am delighted that the Government has said that it will look at the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, in relation to contact with children. I have spoken to kids who have been affected, and I have taken part in Christmas parties at which the only gifts that they have had are ones that my constituents gave me to pass on to them. I have seen the financial, psychological and physical implications for them.

I am very pleased to see this legislation that the Scottish Government is taking forward and which, clearly, the Scottish Parliament will support. That will be an historic moment for Scotland. The important thing about the bill is that the legacy of change may have come from Parliament, but it will belong to the many women who have been victims of abuse, those who have survived and those who have gone on to use their experiences to change the lives of others. My contribution and the result today are dedicated to each and every one of them.