Prevalence Of Elder Abuse In The Community

EDM number 1709 in 2006-07, proposed by Paul Burstow on 14/06/2007.

That this House notes with concern the finding of the UK Study of Abuse and Neglect of Older People 2007 that as many as 342,000 people aged over 66 are victims of abuse in the community, often committed by family members; notes that the research did not examine the prevalence of elder abuse in formal care settings; further notes significant differences in the prevalence of abuse between the nations, with Wales recording twice the level of abuse as Northern Ireland; is disturbed to learn that over 105,000 older people reported being the victims of 10 or more incidents of neglect with most neglect being perpetrated by partners; is further disturbed by the finding that 42,500 older people have suffered sexual abuse including being sexually touched, which amounts to sexual assault; congratulates Comic Relief and the Department of Health for jointly commissioning the study; calls on the Government to give preventing, detecting and punishing elder abuse the same priority as child abuse and domestic violence; and further calls for adult protection to be placed on a sound statutory footing with the necessary powers and duties on public bodies and other agencies to break down barriers between elder abuse, vulnerable adults and domestic violence to promote joint working to raise awareness and ensure the public know how to access adult protection services.

This motion has been signed by a total of 63 MPs.