Frances Black (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 5:

In page 16, between lines 17 and 18, to insert the following:

“Non-intimate partner coercive control

23. The Act of 1997 is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 9:

“Non-intimate partner coercive control

9A.(1) A person commits an offence where he or she knowingly and persistently engages in a course of conduct that consists of abusive behaviour that—

(a) is controlling or coercive,

(b) has a serious effect on a relevant person, and

(c) a reasonable person would consider likely to have a serious effect on a relevant person.

(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), a person’s behaviour has a serious effect on a relevant person if the behaviour causes the relevant person—

(a) to fear that violence will be used against him or her or another person, or

(b) serious alarm or distress that has a substantial adverse impact on the capacity of the relevant person to engage in some or all of the relevant person’s usual day-to-day activities.

(3) Abusive behaviour for the purposes of this section includes engaging in or threatening to engage in the following—

(a) behaviour that deprives the relevant person of liberty, restricts the relevant person’s liberty or otherwise unreasonably controls, regulates or monitors the relevant person’s day-to-day activities, communications or movements, whether by physically following the relevant person, using technology or in another way,

(b) undermining of the relevant person’s independence,

(c) imposing or making decisions on behalf of the relevant person without his or her consent or without the legal authority to do so,

(d) behaviour that is degrading, frightening, humiliating, punishing or shaming,

(e) behaviour that is intimidation,

(f) behaviour that is verbally abusive,

(g) behaviour that isolates the relevant person and preventing contact with family and friends and other supports,

(h) behaviour that causes harm to the relevant person, or to another person, if the relevant person fails to comply with demands made of the relevant person,

(i) behaviour that damages or destroys property,

(j) behaviour that is economically or financially abusive.

(4) A person who commits an offence under subsection (1) is liable—

(a) on summary conviction, to a class A fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months, or both, and

(b) on conviction on indictment, to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or both.

(5) In this section, a person is a ‘relevant person’ in respect of another person if he or she is the subject of abusive behaviour.”."

I thank Safeguarding Ireland for working with me on this amendment. It is an amazing organisation that works tirelessly to protect people made vulnerable by societal neglect and political inaction. They work for older people and people with disabilities. I am happy to support their work.

The introduction of the offence of coercive control in the Domestic Violence Act 2018 was an incredibly important breakthrough. I know this is something the Minister is passionate about. For the first time in a criminal legal setting, the full extent of the control, dehumanisation and terror that makes up domestic violence could be revealed and documented. Before 2018, domestic abusers were generally charged with a series of assaults relating to specific acts of violence towards their partners. Coercive control created the opportunity for the judge and jury to hear about the entire oppressive dynamic of an abusive relationship. This was historic and important for vindicating the experience and trauma of victims. The purpose of criminal courts is not just to deliver punishments for criminal behaviour but also to make findings of fact and expose the truth. However, one downside to the 2018 legislation is that its definition of “coercive control” is limited to behaviour targeting an offender’s current or former intimate partner. People working with people at the risk of abuse, coercion and exploitation understand that coercive control does not just happen in intimate relationships. It can happen in families, in caring situations, residential and domestic, and in any setting where a person becomes dependent on the care of another. Safeguarding Ireland often has to face this in the work it does.

The amendment seeks to insert a new offence in the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997 modelled on the coercive control offence in the Domestic Violence Act 2018. This new offence would apply to everyone, not just intimate partners. The proposed offence would sit alongside coercion in the 1997 Act. The offences are similar but coercion has generally been associated with street-level crime, such as drug-related intimidation. Non-intimate partner coercive control would better capture the specific coercive and abusive dynamics that happen when a trusted person takes advantage and control over someone vulnerable. Such abuse is a sad reflection of the dysfunction and injustice in our treatment of older people, in particular, and people with disabilities. We need to take decisive action to combat it. This amendment would provide a framework for the punishment of offenders in criminal law. We also need comprehensive adult safeguarding legislation on the civil side to create the preventative and investigatory mechanisms to keep people safe and preserve their dignity.

I hope the Government will accept this amendment or, even better, introduce its own version of it on Report Stage. It has been written to mirror existing legislation enacted by the previous Government and I have tried to be as cautious in my approach as possible. People all over this country are experiencing coercive control but because the abuser is not an intimate partner, their legal recourse is significantly curtailed. I do not think that is good enough. This must change. It would be brilliant if the Minister would accept this amendment.