1 year ago
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Image source, ROBERT TIMOTHY/BBC
Spice Girl Melanie Brown says she doesn't cognize if she could spot constabulary to instrumentality home maltreatment allegations seriously
By Victoria Derbyshire & Tim Dodd
BBC Newsnight
Pop Star Melanie Brown has said she would not telephone the constabulary to study home maltreatment due to the fact that it mightiness not beryllium taken "seriously".
Mel B, 1 of the Spice Girls, told BBC Newsnight she would lone study it if "the full full system" of justness was reformed by the government.
She became a campaigner for home maltreatment victims aft leaving what she described arsenic an abusive relationship.
She said constabulary needed amended acquisition astir spotting "tell-tale signs".
"I wouldn't [call the police], due to the fact that I wouldn't cognize if they would instrumentality it seriously," said Ms Brown, who became a patron for home unit foundation Women's Aid successful 2018.
She called for a "redo" of the justness system, and said constabulary officers needed amended acquisition astir spotting the "tell-tale signs" that idiosyncratic is simply a unfortunate of abuse.
"Like if I'm surviving present and I privation to study it to the police, I don't cognize if I tin spot the police. I don't cognize if they're going to instrumentality my allegations seriously," she said.
The vocalist made her sanction arsenic Scary Spice successful the 1990s.
She received an MBE for services to charitable causes and susceptible women past year, and dedicated her grant to "all the different women" dealing with home violence.
In October, she spoke astatine a Conservative enactment league to entreaty for much enactment for home maltreatment victims, and said she was successful an abusive narration for a decennary but kept it a secret.
The latest transgression survey for England and Wales shows astir 2.5 cardinal radical - 1.7 cardinal women and astir 700,000 men - experienced home maltreatment successful the twelvemonth to March 2022.
Speaking to Victoria Derbyshire, Ms Brown described home maltreatment arsenic an "epidemic" and praised those who collected statistic connected it which allows victims to "openly talk".
"When I brought my publication out, cipher wanted to speech astir it. It was similar a taboo topic. It was thing that everybody knows astir but cipher talks astir it."
She said it was impacting "younger and younger" people" including "kids arsenic soon arsenic they commencement immoderate benignant of intimate relationship".
"It's conscionable your mean idiosyncratic who conscionable wants to beryllium loved and cared for," she added.
If you've been affected by domestic abuse oregon controlling behaviour, assistance and enactment is disposable via the BBC Action Line.
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