Dickson Seeks to Extend Safe Leave Bill to Survivors of Sexual Assault and Stalking

East Antrim Alliance MLA, Stewart Dickson, has spoken out regarding the Domestic Abuse (Safe Leave) Bill, which will offer ten days of paid leave for domestic abuse victims and survivors.

Mr Dickson said: "Sadly, Northern Ireland's rates of domestic abuse are the highest in the UK, with approximately 32,000 incidents reported between April 2019 and March 2021. Shockingly, in 2020 this translated to an incident of domestic violence every 17 minutes.

"This legislation proposes that domestic abuse victims have access to up to 10 days’ annual leave, and builds on the tireless work from my colleague, Justice Minister, Naomi Long, after she delivered the Domestic Abuse and Family Proceedings Act earlier this year.

In explaining why Safe Leave is vital for the victims of domestic abuse, Mr Dickson said: "Whilst domestic violence may happen behind closed doors, it also has far-reaching consequences that impact the working lives of those living with an abusive partner. The scale of the problem is huge, with one in five victims having to take time off work as a direct consequence of what they have suffered".

While in support of the Bill as a whole, in the Economy Committee, Mr Dickson called for vital amendments: "From my experience of working over 30 years in the Labour Relations Agency, I understand that confidentiality is paramount, and particularly with this legislation, we must protect victims and survivors from 'water-cooler' conversations.

"We should also look to extend Safe Leave to survivors of rape and sexual assault as well as stalking. The trauma and the financial cost they face are not dissimilar to that of domestic abuse victims, so there is an opportunity here to expand the scope of the Bill.

The Domestic Abuse (Safe Leave) Bill was brought forward as a Private Members Bill and scrutinised today in the Economy Committee.