As Justice Secretary I have been privileged to speak with survivors of domestic abuse and staff from the outstanding support services that work with them.

The new Domestic Abuse offence outlined in the bill introduced last week to the Scottish Parliament is the result of understanding and using their expertise and experience in developing an improved criminal law response to domestic abuse.

It is a clear example of the commitment and compassion that survivors have shown towards saving anyone else going through the terror and violence they have.

These discussions showed that our current laws simply do not reflect the experience of many survivors.

Many victims of domestic abuse experience an on-going course of abuse that may take place over many months or years. To understand the full seriousness of the physical assault or overt threats a victim is subjected to, you have to recognise that often they occur alongside long-term psychological abuse, or ‘coercive and controlling behaviour’.

Creation of this new offence will bring clarity for victims so they can see explicitly that what their partner or ex-partner has done to them is wrong and perpetrators will see what they are doing is criminal and unacceptable behaviour. The offence will improve the powers of the police, prosecutors and our courts to hold perpetrators to account in specific cases.

Framing a new law in this area is obviously complex and we have considered very carefully how to frame a new offence recognising psychological abuse.

It is important that the law clearly distinguishes between abusive behaviour amounting to control and manipulation and the ordinary types of low level disputes and arguments that can happen in any relationship.

In order for the offence to be committed, three different conditions have to be met. Crucially, behaviour must be abusive as the key condition.

For a conviction, the primary condition is that the offender must engage in a course of abusive behaviour towards their partner or ex-partner. If this condition is met, then this behaviour must also be judged by a reasonable person as likely to cause physical or psychological harm to the victim, and the offender must either intend to cause such harm or else show reckless disregard to the likelihood that their actions will cause physical or psychological harm to the victim.

Examples of abusive behaviour are included within the offence both by reference to specific behaviour itself, such as violent behaviour, and also by reference to the effect different types of behaviour can have on a victim. These ‘relevant effects’ are crucial in capturing the nature of domestic abuse all too often missed under existing laws.

The offence contains within it checks and balances and, for example, includes a statutory defence available to anyone accused of the offence that their behaviour was reasonable.

This offence is the product of detailed discussion and consultation with those who have direct experience of abuse or work closely with those who have. It is firmly in line with international definitions of domestic abuse and fits within our wider approach to tackling violence against women and girls.

And while we know that the vast majority of crimes of this type involve a male perpetrator and female victim, I would like to stress that the bill is gender neutral and would apply to any abusive domestic relationship whether abuse is perpetrated by a male or female and whether the victim was a male or a female.

I recognise that that this is a ground-breaking offence but it is necessary to deal with the harm caused by domestic abuse and it shows Scotland is a progressive and enlightened country, intent on learning from legislation used elsewhere.

I am also very happy that our partners from Scottish Women’s Aid and ASSIST were able to join the First Minister last Monday.

I am indebted to them and all of the others who have worked with us to draft a bill dealing with such a complex issue. Their support has ensured that the most important voices are heard – that of the victims of abuse so that the criminal law reflects for the first time our modern understanding of how domestic abuse is carried out.

The commitment of the staff of these organisations and agencies has allowed survivors to feel able to contribute to the development of this legislation and guaranteed that the resulting laws reflect the reality of what they have experienced.

I look forward to debate and further scrutiny of the legislation as it goes through parliament to ensure it is fit for purpose and as effective as it can be in tackling domestic abuse.