Domestic abuse 'hidden emergency' (From Penarth Times)

Domestic abuse 'hidden emergency'

7:11am Tuesday 17th July 2012 in National News © Press Association 2013

One in every five emergency calls to police in some parts of England and Wales is related to domestic violence, according to analysis released by Labour.

But Labour said that some measures which it brought in to tackle violence against women and girls while in government were now "under threat" from coalition cuts.

Labour candidates in the first elections for police and crime commissioners (PCCs) in England and Wales this November would make tackling domestic violence a priority, said shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper.

Launching a Labour policy review on the issue, Ms Cooper said: "Domestic violence is a hidden emergency for over a million women in Britain every year who call out for urgent help but are not properly heard.

"Domestic abuse is still a hidden crime. The scale of it cannot be tolerated. One in five of the tens of thousands of 999 calls received by one police force working with us were domestic violence related, and last year the domestic violence rate was twice as high as the burglary rate. Two women every week are killed at the hands of their abuser in England and Wales - yet it still isn't given the priority it needs to keep people safe.

"In government, Labour made tackling violence against women and girls a priority - and measures such as specialist domestic violence courts, specialist police units and prosecutors, partnerships with councils and housing to support victims all helped reduce incidents of domestic violence.

"But a lot of that work is under threat at the moment, and the truth is we also need to go much further with stronger action to keep people safe.

"For a start, Labour police and crime commissioners will make tackling violence against women and girls a priority in their policing and crime plans. This will include training for police officers, specialist units, partnerships with housing, local government, schools and support organisations to protect victims and prevent abuse.

"But we also need more action in the majority of cases which never reach court. It is shocking that in over 90% of incidents little or no further action is taken against the perpetrator and little is done to prevent repeat violence."

Labour's Women's Safety Commission interim report identified a 31% cut in funding to refuges and services tackling domestic violence and said that 230 people were turned away from refuges on an average day in 2011. It also warned that the number of independent domestic violence advisors was being reduced and specialist domestic violence courts and police units were under threat from cuts.