Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I do not think any one of us can be surprised that in any workplace in any environment bullying and harassment can take place but to be honest I am surprised, and I do not consider myself as having lived under a rock, at the scale and amount of it I am hearing, particularly when it comes to sexual harassment and violence. I have convened the national advisory group, chaired by the National Women's Council of Ireland, which advised me on these issues. The Union of Students in Ireland, USI, are on it also along with lecturers. Some very good work is being done across the system but I am alarmed by the results of the survey carried out by NUI Galway and USI in regard to sexual harassment and violence. We need to remember that while universities are autonomous institutions we fund them. Autonomy can never be an excuse for not having the most robust procedures in place. In terms of the data the Deputy looked for, because they are autonomous I do not have a collated version of that available to me now but I believe these action plans, with oversight and implementation from the Higher Education Authority, it having an oversight role in implementation, could potentially be a very positive development. We need a big cultural shift and I want to try to bring that about.

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