Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. I share in the Deputy's expression of sympathies to the family and friends of the homeless individual who passed away. I also convey to the House my deep sadness at the passing of Trish Carrick, whom we lately honoured and spoke of. I offer her husband Damien and children Ciarán, Ríoghna, Sorcha and Eoin our sincere sympathies.

The programme for Government is very clear and has a very strong commitment to developing the third national strategy on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. There can be no toleration for violence against women in our society. We must do everything we possibly can to assist and support women and families who are the victims of unacceptable violence, aggression and control. We have provided additional resources in the most recent budget to An Garda Síochána, Tusla and other services that support women who have been victims of violence, and we will continue to do that. The Minister for Justice is currently undertaking an audit of all services in this area, which is an area all three Government parties want to prioritise. I assure the Deputy that if she wishes to engage with the Government on the areas or the specific locations where additional funding is required, I will ensure that a response will occur in that regard. Particular funding has been given to Tusla in the budget to deal with the Covid-19 impact. We were particularly concerned about the elevation to level 5 following the experience of the first phase of the lockdown and its impact in the form of increased domestic violence. There was approximately €2 million in addition to approximately €25.3 million that had been allocated to these services for the entirety of 2020.

The Deputy identified an important point about culture and the importance of ensuring within society at large that Ireland makes it very clear that, as a society, there can be absolutely no toleration whatsoever for gender-based violence. We must be absolute about that and then, through education and through a variety of fora, make sure that is clear. We must then ensure that the adequate supports are available so that people can be freed and be enabled to leave that coercive control and situations of violence, safe in the knowledge that there is a pathway out of that experience that, unfortunately, too many in our society have had over the years. Across various Departments, we want to do everything we possibly can to help victims or anybody who is at risk of domestic or sexual abuse. We will continue to be available to help in that regard and provide the necessary supports, and also to strategically deal with this in an effective and comprehensive way.

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