Member News
By Nigel Dodds MP - 10th November 2010
Nigel Dodds MP writes for ePolitix.com ahead of the introduction of his ten minute rule bill on elderly abuse.
The MP for North Belfast, Nigel Dodds will put forward a bill to promote awareness of abuse of the elderly and adults at risk. His bill will look at:
- training on how to recognise and respond to such abuse amongst those who are likely to encounter abuse in the course of their work
- greater awareness and understanding of the rights of victims of abuse amongst agencies with responsibilities for providing, arranging, commissioning, monitoring and inspecting care services,
- the development of local strategies for preventing abuse of elderly people and adults at risk, and for ensuring that victims are assisted in recovering from the effects of abuse.
The bill will ensure that criminal law is equipped with a single common piece of legislation to reinforce existing policies designed to protect the elderly from a range of abusive trends including emotional, physical, sexual, psychological and financial exploitation and neglect.
The legislation is not just about responding to individual allegations. It will place a strong emphasis on prevention, demonstrating the need for a major cultural shift towards understanding the circumstances and factors that cultivate and contribute towards abuse, acknowledging the reality of its effect and how we as a society must move towards eradicating it.
UK police statistics suggest that an estimated 340,000 (1 in 25) older people are affected by abuse per year and a Help the Aged (2008) report into financial abuse indicated that 0.5- 2.5 per cent of elderly people felt they had experienced financial abuse or exploitation.
Current safeguarding legislation is complex and spread across various Acts and offers only limited protection. Specific legislation would afford legal weight and facilitate better coordination of agencies as they confront the silent abuse. The same legislation would address the training and education deficit across the range of elderly support services, including the private, public and voluntary sectors.
Devolved administrations are already taking steps to target elder abuse, with Scotland introducing the Adult Support & Protection (Scotland) Act 2007, Wales preparing to make recommendations by the end of 2010, and Northern Ireland preparing a policy framework for consultation in early 2011.
UK-wide legislation on elder abuse would facilitate a more comprehensive assessment with a common benchmark standard across all support agencies. It would establish a more consistent and effective response by statutory providers. It would ensure better training and education which would improve levels of awareness. It would consolidate current local authority guidelines and offer enhanced guidance to the criminal justice system across the United Kingdom and to the devolved administrations and associated departments.
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