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SNP have ‘no plan’ to tackle domestic abuse despite soaring levels of the crime, Scot Labour warns

SCOTTISH Labour has accused the SNP of having “no plan” to tackle domestic abuse despite soaring levels of crime.

Domestic abuse rates in Scotland have been rising, with 2,573 crimes recorded in 2024-25 — a 44 per cent increase in two years, official figures show.

Meanwhile, offenders seem to be dodging both prison and the rehabilitation programme that the SNP government put forward, Scottish Labour said.

The SNP’s Caledonian System aims to tackle domestic abuse, with ministers praising its effectiveness and describing it as a “priority.”

But SNP minister Siobhian Brown recently revealed that just 201 men completed the programme in 2024-25.

An even smaller number of offenders go to jail, with the most recent sentencing figures showing that just 129 people — 14 per cent of those convicted in 2023-24 — received a custodial sentence.

Scottish Labour justice spokeswoman Pauline McNeill hit out at SNP for having “no plan to tackle this crisis,” adding: “The SNP’s soft-touch approach to justice is allowing abusers to dodge jail and avoid rehabilitation.

“The truth is, too many offenders face no real consequences under the SNP.”

The Scottish government was approached for comment. 

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