The NSW Government has introduced significant legal reforms that will make it more difficult for those accused of serious domestic violence offences to get bail.

The reforms, introduced yesterday, include reversing the presumption of bail for serious domestic violence offences, by expanding the category of “show cause” offences and will require alleged offenders to demonstrate why they should be out in the community.

Coercive control can manifest in different ways and is linked to a pattern of behaviour that may include financial and emotional abuse, violence and intimidation, threats against pets or loved ones, tracking someone’s movements, or isolating them from family and friends.

Attorney-General Michael Daley says coercive control in current and former intimate partner relationships will be a crime punishable by up to seven years’ imprisonment, adding it was essential people felt safe in their relationships and these new laws will ensure they’re supported.