A new law, which will lead to prison sentences of up to 14 years for domestic abuse crimes, passed its first hurdle this week.

The House of Keys granted a second reading to the Domestic Abuse Bill on Tuesday.

It will define domestic abuse specifically in Manx law for the first time and also give police the powers to issue emergency protection notices to keep alleged perpetrators away from someone at risk.

In addition, the bill contains enabling provisions that would allow the government, at a later date, to draw up regulations that would grant men and women in the island the right to information telling them if their partner has a violent past - known as Clare’s Law.

Home Affairs Minister Bill Malarkey said: ’Domestic abuse is a gross abuse of trust where people living in an intimate and/or family relationship find they are not safe from those close to them.

’People are entitled to expect respect, security, trust and love.’

He added: ’No one should have to experience the pain and suffering, consequences of abusive behaviour by family members or intimate others. Furthermore children should not have to witness or indeed suffer the effects of such abusive behaviour in any of its forms.

’We have a duty to protect our people and address such behaviour as being unacceptable.’

The bill creates offences of domestic abuse and controlling or coercive behaviour in intimate and family relationships.

It also sets out the punishments of up to 14 years.

An offence of domestic abuse would apply where it involved people who were ’personally connected’ and the perpetrator intended the victim to ’suffer physical or psychological harm’ or was reckless to causing such harm.

Also established is an offence of ’controlling or coercive behaviour’ on a continuous behaviour which causes the victim ’to fear, on at least two occasions, that violence will be used against [them] or) it causes [them] alarm or distress which has a substantial adverse effect â?¦’ on their day to day activities.

Although MHKs gave unanimous backing to the bill’s second reading, which means its principles have been approved, Mr Malarkey had to allay concerns raised about how domestic abuse protection notices would be used.

The police will be able issue domestic abuse prevention notices to deal with ’immediate situations’.

They could involve ordering someone to stay away from another person or location. Anyone breaching such a notice could go to jail for 12 months.

The police would have 14 days from issuing the notice to seek a domestic abuse protection order from the court.

But several MHKs asked where those who were made the subject of such a notice would go and whether they would be made homeless, which could put the police in a difficult position and create further problems.

The minister said his department was prepared and would have accommodation available for people who were made the subject of a notice.

The proposed legislation will undergo detailed scrutiny during the clauses stage, over the coming weeks.