Mairead Farrell (Galway West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a ghabháil le mo chomhghleacaithe, na Teachtaí McDonald agus O'Reilly, as an mBille fíor-thábhachtach seo a chur os comhair na Dála. Dá n-achtófaí an Bille seo, thabharfadh sé ceart reachtúil ar shaoire oibrithe maidir le foiréigean baile agus tá sin fíor-thábhachtach. I thank my colleagues, Deputies McDonald and O'Reilly, for tabling this important Bill. I am delighted to see that the Government will support it.

This is an issue that we can all say has reached pandemic proportions in Ireland. According to Safe Ireland, one in four women has experienced physical or sexual abuse by a partner or non-partner since the age of 15. We also know that abused women are twice as likely to experience chronic physical health conditions as non-abused women. Victims also report higher levels of depression, anxiety, stress disorders, eating disorders and self-harm, and the list goes on. This shows how essential this legislation will be.

I can speak about my constituency, Galway West. The local domestic abuse support services have been vocal about the fact that they are still open. We need to make it known that they are still open. People are concerned about this given the pandemic but it should be clear that these services are available to provide support. We learned at a joint policing committee meeting this week that there has been an increase in the number of barring orders. The Garda has made it clear that it is willing to help.

This legislation is extremely important because it will enable victims to take time off work when they need to do so to seek support, find accommodation or attend court. We have seen similar measures introduced internationally, for example, in New Zealand, Australia and certain parts of Canada. It is high time that we did it too. It is upsetting that at a time when we are all asked to stay at home, home for some people, unfortunately, is not a safe place. We need to ensure we provide all the supports we can and send a strong message from the House tonight that we are all on the side of the victims of domestic abuse.

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