Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

What has become increasingly clear to me following the publication of the O'Malley report last year and my engagement with victims and with the criminal justice system is that it is not child friendly and is not an encouraging, welcoming or warm place for a family or for children to come forward to. Therefore, everything required must be done to change that situation, including, for example, ensuring that specialist interview suites are available as close as possible to where people live, so that they do not have to travel for hours with a child to a different and new environment. It is also important to ensure that when people are going through the criminal justice system that they are supported. Particularly important in that regard is the development of intermediaries and specifically-trained experts who can support children and other vulnerable people as they go through the criminal justice system. That is a key priority in the Supporting A Victim's Journey policy. A specialist educational programme is being developed in the University of Limerick, UL, which will train such intermediaries, because we have a massive deficit in that overall number. In addition, it is important to ensure that our Judiciary, legal teams and members of the Garda are trained in the best way possible to support and to work with young children as they go through what is such a traumatic time. There is much work to do, but we are making a great deal of progress.

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