Meeting of the Parliament 05 December 2024
I welcome the chance to speak in the debate and contribute to this sobering discussion of what more can be done to protect and empower young people’s voices in Scotland.
Although for us the theme of this year’s 16 days of activism is to imagine a Scotland without gender-based violence, recent statistics remind us that violence against women and girls remains far too common. I attended a meeting last night, which others have mentioned, that was hosted by Tess White and Claire Baker and which brought to the Parliament the stark reality of the situation in Scotland. It touched on the unpleasant truth about life for many women and girls, particularly those who are the most vulnerable in our society.
For example, a clear majority of domestic abuse victims are women and the vast majority of perpetrators are men. We must not shy away from that reality. Women do not fear being attacked or abused by other women; they fear the actions of men. Therefore, as has been said, we must focus on the behaviour of men if we wish to put an end to that.
In 2023-24, more than 63,000 incidents of domestic abuse were recorded in Scotland, which is a 3 per cent increase on the previous year. Recorded incidents of rape and attempted rape increased by 10 per cent, with 95 per cent of victims being women. The reality for our young women is that, of all the sexual crimes reported in 2023-24, 37 per cent involved a victim under the age of 18.
Those are just a few of the damning insights into gender-based violence in Scotland, but it does not have to be like that. Gender violence is not innate. The truth is that it is learned and nurtured through stereotypes, misogyny, bias and ingrained inequalities.
I want to raise the issue of pornography and the normalisation of porn in the lives of young men. Last night, we heard from women who are researching this area, which is not often tackled, as it is an uncomfortable area and one that seems impossible to change. However, porn is not acceptable and is not normal, and we should be saying that to young men. Young men need to know that, and they need to be educated on the kindness that relationships can bring and not focus on the behaviours that are played out in those pornographic images. Society has a responsibility to challenge that industry and the behaviours that relate to it. We, as parliamentarians, must ensure that adequate and appropriate resources are provided to tackle that injustice.
I welcome much of what the minister said in her opening speech and the work of the Government, but I also think that members across the chamber have made some very powerful statements about what we can do. We all agree that the recent statistics reveal that more must be done to tackle violence against women and girls.
I thank Beatrice Wishart for bringing up the issue of Afghanistan. We all agree that what is happening to women and young girls in Afghanistan must be challenged. Scotland should never accept complacency. It must challenge all aspects of violence against women here in Scotland and, as Beatrice Wishart reminded us, right across the world.
As we have heard, a Scottish Labour report that was published last year found that a significant shift in social and cultural norms is required to prevent and address violence against women and girls. Tackling sexism and misogyny from a young age is critical to ending gender-based violence later down the line. Therefore, the Government must ensure that it funds initiatives and services that promote that necessary cultural change.
Women in politics have always worked in a cross-party manner and have been prepared to work with Governments to develop new strategies that should be followed by tangible outcomes. We need men in the chamber to do that, too, and I welcome the First Minister taking a lead on that today. I thank him for being here, and I thank all the men who are present in the chamber.
For the sake of young girls and young people, we must tackle the behaviours that we are discussing today, and I hope that we in Scotland can work in a cross-party manner to do so.
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