The commission’s report criticized the British Prime Minister David Cameron for showing a “reckless indifference” to women safety by its cuts to street lighting, police numbers and CCTV, putting battered females’ lives at risk, and making it harder for them to get help.
Warning that the cuts “are creating a potentially dangerous situation”, the report also referred to how the Tory-led government has slashed funding for victims of abuse, including the closure of 23 specialist domestic violence courts, and restricting legal aid for housing, welfare and child custody cases.
The Commission, chaired by former Labour MP Vera Baird, said, “Just as there is now overwhelming evidence that women have borne the brunt of the economic recession so too it is clear the services designed to keep them safe are now under threat too.”
Moreover, the report found services offering help to battered women have had their funding reduced by 31% since May 2010.
“These cuts are going too far, too fast at a time of increased need, which is putting further strain on the ability of these services to support the safety of women,” said the report.
Writing in the Daily Mirror, Shadow Equalities Minister Yvette Cooper accused David Cameron of having a “serious blind spot about women’s lives”.
Meanwhile, the Royal National Institute of Blind People Scotland warned that the coalition government cuts to welfare benefits vital services could push blind and partially sighted people “back to the margins of society.”
SSM/MB
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