Pauline Tully (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am very concerned about the statistics released this week which state that one in five detected sexual crimes reported to the Garda involved minors as both victims and perpetrators. This is extremely worrying, as it involves those so young, most of whom I am presuming are in their teens. I do not want to think that they could be younger. As a former teacher in a secondary school, I am aware that inappropriate comments and touching may happen regularly, to female students in particular, but they seldom report it. It seems to happen in crowded corridors and certainly when staff are not present. I wish to stress that I believe that only a small number of students are responsible but it is enough to make female students in particular feel very uncomfortable.

Rather than letting this continue, measures need to be taken to educate young people on what sexual abuse, sexual assault and rape are and how serious and unacceptable they are. Education on consent is vital. Sexual violence is on the increase. As the Minister knows, many sexual crimes are not reported and of those that are, very few are brought to court. I believe that sexual and violent crimes against people should attract much higher sentences. However, I do not feel it is the only measure that should be utilised to deal with this issue, and education and information are absolutely essential.

On average one in ten women are killed every year in Ireland by a current or previous partner. Many more are violently assaulted and left for dead. Sentencing for the non-fatal attacks is far too lenient. It is disgraceful. I also want to support the call by Una Ring and Eve McDowell to make stalking a separate offence and with significant penalties attached for those found guilty.

The other issue about which I am hugely concerned is the use of illegal drugs and drug-related crime. Many families in my constituency are being threatened on a regular basis because it is maintained that a member of the family owes some drug dealer hundreds or thousands of euro. I know of young people who have committed suicide as a result of these instances. Families are afraid to report the intimidation to the Garda. People are afraid to walk the streets in the evening or at night because of the regular drug dealing that is happening on many dark streets and alleys. More CCTV is required in order that people feel safe walking the streets. Areas also need to be well-lit. That requires more funding for local authorities to put these measures in place.

Similar to the sexual assault issue, a cross-departmental approach is required to deal adequately with the drugs issue. It cannot be viewed as a issue for the Department of Justice only. I wonder where the national drugs strategy is at now. Longer sentences for those found to be dealing class A drugs, such as cocaine and heroin, are urgently needed.

Finally, there is a frustration in many areas when people hear of instances of a crime being committed by a person who is out on bail. While I understand the need for every accusation of crime to be treated independently and the presumption of innocence to be maintained, if someone is found to have committed a crime while out on bail they should be treated more stringently by the court and a stiffer sentence given.

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