Wendy Chamberlain said the figures gave a “terrifying” sense of the scale of the issue, as she urged the Scottish Government to act.
Scottish cops were called to domestic abuse incidents almost 6,000 times over the Christmas 2024 period, new figures suggest.
Between December 1, 2024 and January 3, 2025, Police Scotland were called to 5,945 domestic incidents, according to figures released to the Scottish Lib Dems.
Scottish Lib Dem deputy leader and former police officer Wendy Chamberlain said the figures gave a “terrifying” sense of the scale of the issue, as she urged the Scottish Government to act.
The Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act was passed in 2021 and created domestic abuse protection notices and domestic abuse protection orders, which would allow for an abuser to be removed from the victim’s home immediately after an incident. The two provisions have yet to be implemented.
Ms Chamberlain said: “These figures reflect just how prevalent violence against women and girls is across Scotland. Around 6,000 incidents in the Christmas period alone gives a terrifying sense of the scale of domestic abuse.
“Five years since the Domestic Abuse Act passed and the SNP are still dragging their heels over the crucial protections within it. The Government have failed to give any good reason for the persistence of these delays.
“Scottish Liberal Democrats recently passed a motion at our conference calling for an end to these delays, so we can remove abusers from the family home and keep women out of harm’s way.
“We would also take steps in a range of areas, from health to education to justice, to tackle the root misogyny often underlying this violence.”
Siobhian Brown, Minister for Victims and Community Safety, said: “We are committed to fully implementing Part 1 of the 2021 Act. This is a complex piece of legislation with recognised operational challenges identified by justice partners and stakeholders.
“To address these, a short-life working group was established to consider possible legislative changes to ensure the Act can be implemented as intended. We are focused on preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls.
“That’s why we are increasing the delivering equally safe fund by 5 per cent, bringing total investment to almost £46 million over 2026-2028, to ensure organisations continue their vital work to prevent violence and support survivors.”
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