UK’s first Domestic Abuse Commissioner appointed

The UK’s first Domestic Abuse Commissioner has been named as former charity chief Nicole Jacobs.

Announcing the move, the Home Office said the new position will help protect victims of abuse and bring more offenders to justice.

Commenting on her appointment as Domestic Abuse Commissioner, Ms Jacobs, the former Chief Executive Officer at charity Standing Together Against Domestic Abuse, said she intends to “raise the voice of victims and survivors of all ages, status and background”.

The move comes after the Prime Minister Boris Johnson confirmed that the Government will reintroduce a new Domestic Abuse bill after the prorogation of Parliament.

The bill will reintroduce a number of legislative changes, including amending the legal definition of domestic abuse to specifically include economic abuse and control and manipulative non-physical abuse for the first time.

It will also include a new Domestic Abuse Protection Notice and Domestic Abuse Protection Order and prohibit perpetrators of domestic and other forms of abuse from cross-examining their victims in person in the family courts.

Tweeting his intention to reintroduce the bill, the Prime Minister said: “Domestic abuse shatters lives & tears families apart. We are fully committed to tackling this horrific crime – which is why the Queen’s Speech will confirm we will be reintroducing domestic abuse legislation in the next session.”

Campaigners have called for urgent action after the latest statistics reveal that the number of people killed as a result of domestic violence in the UK is at its highest level in five years. The figures show that in the last year alone, some 173 people were killed in domestic violence-related homicides.

Click here to learn more about the Domestic Abuse bill.

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