Katherine Zappone (Dublin South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

The Children First Act 2015 will be fully commenced by 2017. Like the Deputy, I have spent time over the years in the shelters and centres dealing with domestic abuse for which Tusla is responsible. I am aware of the trauma experienced in such cases.

This matter is a high priority for me. Each year, I provide a performance statement to Tusla to identify my priorities. One of these is domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. Existing research published by Tusla indicates that only one in ten of those who need access to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence services is accessing them. These services have an important role in protecting those subjected to family and intimate violence, as well as providing resources for those impacted by sexual violence, to vindicate their right to health and advance their social inclusion. Tusla takes this role seriously. The decision to establish a national unit for domestic, sexual and gender-based violence was forward looking. It brings together services for forms of violence that are often interlinked and inclusive of, as the Deputy pointed out, the child and the adults.

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