I’m a firm believer in equality, but there’s one kind of inequality and one group of people that I’ve not heard mentioned in the Senedd yet, and, in relation to domestic abuse, that is men. I agree with Erin Pizzey, the founder of the first women’s refuge in the UK, and she says that domestic abuse isn’t gender-specific, it applies to both genders, because both males and females can be violent and can be abusive.

I tend to feel that the abuse of males is tolerated in Wales; indeed, I believe it’s institutionalised. The emotional abuse of males is permitted. If you take South Wales Police, for example, it’s absolutely impossible to get them to accept a complaint from a man who is being emotionally abused. I’ve got another case on my books now; I’m going to see how we get on next week. In this city, it is shameful that, as a male, there is absolutely nowhere—nowhere—to go for non-judgmental domestic abuse support. I’m looking around this Chamber and, as I’m speaking, I’m seeing smiles and grins, and that really worries me. It also says a lot about the prejudice that we find in this Chamber.

Now, 13.2 per cent of men are victims of domestic abuse; 23 per cent, a very large minority—it is a minority, but it’s a large minority—23 per cent of all victims are male; 19 men died at the hands of their partner or ex-partner two years ago, according to the figures; and what is really revealing is that 29 per cent of men are unlikely to talk about their experiences—they simply won’t talk about their experiences. Twelve per cent of females find themselves in the same situation. So, what I’m here today to do, in just highlighting those facts, really, is to call for real equality amongst everybody, regardless of faith, gender, sexuality, class, colour. What we really need to embrace, as I said, is that very, very simple word and it is called equality, and it’s something that I believe in absolutely passionately. Diolch. Thank you.