Mr. Colm Kelly:

I thank the Chair. I really appreciate it. I thank the Deputy for the question. First, I would highlight that education also needs to extend into the world of work. We know that patriarchal structures, since time immemorial, put down women and girls. I would call for an action that is in the national strategy and is something that we have lobbied the Government on this for the last eight months namely, the ratification of ILO convention 190 and implementation of recommendation 206.

Second, I want to refer to an observation made by our colleagues and friends, from the National Women's Council of Ireland in its submission to the Department of Justice in June 2021. It noted that consent education is an important element of DSGBV education it is but one aspect, albeit an important one. Consent as the primary framing or focus fails to capture the inherent complexities of DSGBV. I would echo that. This needs to be a broader human rights, and as our colleagues at AkiDwa mentioned, holistic approach to the issue.

There are broader measures required. The Istanbul Convention speaks of legislative measures also.

I will quote from the Department of Justice report on legislating for hate speech and hate crime last year. It states: "Measures ranging from education and awareness to codes of conduct and professional standards are essential to any comprehensive approach to tackling hate speech and hate crime, including by effective prevention." What I noted in reviewing that report is that there are some very clear nexuses in relation to the intersectionality vis-à-vis who experiences hate crime and speech in this country and who may be at heightened risk of experiencing domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. We need to ensure that the education programme we have is age appropriate, that it begins at primary level but that it does tackle-----