Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Domestic violence continues to be a major problem in the country, and the Tánaiste will accept that, unfortunately, in many instances the family home transpires to be a very unsafe place for women and quite a number of children. Many of the practitioners in the area doing the best they can to tackle the particular problem look to the Government's ratification of the Istanbul Convention as a step in the right direction and an indication the State will, for once, prioritise the challenges that exist. Will the Tánaiste tell us when might we expect to see the Government ratifying the Istanbul Convention given that it came into force internationally on 1 August? The reformed and consolidated domestic violence Bill is listed at No. 60. Is this part of the preparation for the ratification of the Istanbul Convention? No. 114 on the legislative list is the family court Bill. The establishment of a family court was part of the programme for Government. Will the Tánaiste give an undertaking that the Istanbul Convention will be ratified and the family court system will be in place before the Government goes out of office?

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