A minimum age limit under which domestic abuse charges could be brought against someone has been removed before a new bill even becomes law.

During the clauses stage of the House of Keys’ consideration of the Domestic Abuse Bill, amendments removing the minimum age, of 16, under which charges could be brought, were removed.

The bill defines domestic abuse in law for the first time, with offences carrying prison sentences of up to 14 years, came under close scrutiny last week.

It also gives police the powers to issue emergency protection notices to keep alleged perpetrators away from someone at risk and introduces an offence of ’controlling or coercive behaviour’

Home Affairs department member Clare Barber (Douglas East) tabled an amendment which removed provision for an age definition of domestic abuse perpetrators to be ’16 or over’.

She explained: ’The effect will be to include adolescent on parent or adult relative abuse and enable the relevant agencies to address such incidents, which are, sadly, perhaps more frequent than we might think, as domestic abuse.’

The amendment was approved by MHKs.

But another amendment did cause some concern.

Mrs Barber’s DHA colleague Dr Alex Allinson (Ramsey) sought to amend definition of what constituted a relationship under which a domestic abuse situation could occur. One of the criteria, of having been in an intimate personal relationship with each other, would have the requirement of it having been ’within the last 10 years’.

But Julie Edge (Onchan) expressed concern that this time limit did not extend to people who had once been married or in a civil partnership, or who agreed to get married or enter into a civil partnership, who were also covered by the new offences.

She sought an adjournment of consideration of Dr Allinson’s amendment to allow that issue to be looked at further but received no support.

Home Affairs Minister Bill Malarkey said Ms Edge had contacted the department with her concerns in advance but was happy that Dr Allinson’s amendment - which passed - was sufficient.

The bill also contains provision for later introducing what is known as ’Clare’s Law’, which would allow the government 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.

Although all the clauses that were put to the vote last week were passed, the clauses stage has not been completed, because extra clauses that will bring in new rules over cross-examination by defendants still have to be debated.

That will take place on December 17.