Mick Barry (Cork North Central, Solidarity) | Oireachtas source

In terms of the scale and horror of this issue, Mary Crilly from the sexual violence centre in Cork recently said:

I have yet to meet a homeless woman who hasn't been raped. They tend to say "I've lost count of the number of times that I've been raped."

I welcome the fact there is to be a pilot scheme in Cork to provide a refuge for homeless rape victims but I ask the Taoiseach what is the timescale for this initiative to come to fruition. In all of Cork city and county there is one refuge for families who are victims of gender-based violence. There is space for six families there but it had to be restricted to two families during Covid. This is a sign of the scale of the failure of the Government and the State and the lack of investment in this issue. I listened to the Taoiseach when he said the Department of Education will clearly receive a report on the events in the school in Carlow. I ask him to comment that the Department will not just receive a report from the school authorities but will seek the views, opinions and experiences of the students themselves on this issue.

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