I welcome John Swinney recognising the scale of violence against women and girls and committing his personal leadership to tackling it.
But today, Stacy’s family made it very clear that while some of these proposals are important, they are “not anywhere near good enough” when it comes to protecting people who are in danger right now.
Stacy’s brother Sean spoke incredibly powerfully today. He said that people who are repeatedly offending and are dangerous are not simply going to listen to advice about what is right or wrong. They are making choices to continue that behaviour.
As Sean said, what is needed is “real consequences to their actions” — action that deters dangerous offenders rather than relying on appealing to their better nature.
And I completely agree with him.
Changing attitudes in boys and young men is absolutely important. We need prevention, education and cultural change for the future.
But Stacy’s family are asking a different and incredibly important question: what about the safety of people right now?
That is exactly why I started the campaign for Stacy’s Law because we need practical protection for people at risk now.
I was genuinely encouraged to hear Justice Secretary Neil Gray say today that the Government is looking at expanding GPS technology and accelerating its full roll-out. He acknowledged that the technology is available.
I welcome that. But now we need urgency and action.
Stacy’s family know better than anyone what can happen when someone known to pose a risk is released on bail. Sean said today that people experiencing domestic abuse are consistently being let down when their abusers are bailed, and the family want greater consideration given to the person at risk during bail decisions and stronger repercussions when bail conditions are breached.
That is what Stacy’s Law is trying to change.
From the bottom of my heart, thank you to every single person who has signed and shared this petition. Every signature, every share and every person who has helped keep Stacy’s name and this campaign moving forward genuinely means so much.
But unfortunately, it is going to take more to push the Government to listen and turn these conversations into real action.
So please help us make more noise.
Share the petition again. Ask your friends and family to sign it. Send it directly to your MSP. Tag MSPs and Scotland’s decision-makers. Share it in your community groups and workplaces. Ask your representatives directly whether they will support Stacy’s Law.
Stacy’s mum Ann has said that after meeting John Swinney, it does seem like he wants to take action.
Now we need to help make sure that action happens.
Stacy should still be here. Her family should never have had to fight for these changes after losing her.
Please get behind Stacy’s family and Stacy’s Law and help us push this as far as we possibly can.
Protection should begin when the risk is identified — not after another life is lost.