Dr. Laura Finnegan:

I am sorry; I might just make a comment on that specifically. First, it is genuinely our employer's responsibility, and not that of the trade union, to put those through. It is not up to the INMO or the IMO to contact the Garda to sit down to put these measures in place. These things have been put in place in other countries. The NHS brought in an Act in 2018 that allows more protection for staff who are abused within healthcare settings. That includes things like mandatory sentencing and clear guidelines around the prosecution of these things.

The Deputy asked about things like arrest rates. We know from some figures that arrest rates are quite low. They are approximately one in 50 and then after that, conviction rates are approximately one in 200 in these kinds of settings. Our recommendations are that there should be clear guidelines around how these instances are dealt with and prosecuted going forward.