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

As Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, I am greatly saddened by the levels of domestic violence in our country and the impact this has on our children.

Many cases are covered by the media but many others remain hidden, as the Deputy will be aware. While overall policy responsibility for domestic, sexual and gender-based violence rests with the Department of Justice and Equality, it is an issue which impacts severely on children’s lives and which is of great concern to me.

In 2014, Tusla assumed statutory responsibility for the care and protection of victims of domestic violence. It funds some 60 services throughout the country. These include emergency refuge and support services, community-based domestic violence support services and rape crisis centres.

It is time to update the legislation and I am in the process of providing observations on the Domestic Violence Bill.

The Children First Act 2015 falls under the remit of my Department. It places elements of the Children First: National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children, published in 2011, on a statutory basis and is being commenced on a phased basis.

The Act will be fully commenced by the end of next year. It will impose a statutory obligation on mandated persons to report concern of harm over a defined threshold to Tusla, the Child and Family Agency. This will be required to be done without delay and in a specified format. It will also place obligations on providers of relevant services to children, including domestic violence shelters, to keep children safe from harm while availing of their services.

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