THE Scottish Government is facing calls for a crackdown on domestic violence after new figures showed fewer than one in 20 charges are tried in courts with the toughest sentencing powers.

Ministers were yesterday urged to review sentencing guidelines after the Crown Office confirmed that just 4.4% of domestic abuse charges were prosecuted on indictment.

Scottish Lib Dem justice spokeswomen Alison McInnes said cases involving a "sustained pattern of violence" should be sent to higher courts, where tougher sentences could be imposed.

She added: "Parliament and the public are united in their disdain for the perpetrators of these crimes. These figures underline the need to review the way in which domestic abuse charges are prosecuted in Scotland to ensure that it is appropriate."

Figures revealed at Holyrood showed that last year only 182 out of 4118 domestic abuse charges were prosecuted on indictment, meaning they were heard before a jury in a court with higher sentencing powers than those available to a sheriff sitting in a summary trial.

The previous year 121 out of 4006 charges were prosecuted on indictment.

Campaign group Scottish Women's Aid backed calls for a review of the way domestic abuse cases are handled. Manager Lily Greenan said: "We are not terribly surprised by these figures, but we are concerned."

Pressure on the Scottish Government has been growing since the trial of former MSP Bill Walker, who was jailed for a year after being convicted of 23 counts of assault against three ex-wives and a step-daughter over a period of nearly 30 years.