Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will be sharing my time with Deputies Brendan Smith, Flaherty and Phelan.

I greatly appreciate the opportunity to contribute to this extremely important and solemn debate, and one which, like everyone, I simply wish we had no need to have. First, like others, I would like to express my sincere condolences to the family, friends and boyfriend of Ashling Murphy and all those in this country who have been touched by the brutal effects of that tragic murder. Unfortunately, it is yet another example of a woman being murdered at the hands of a man in this country. Once again, it is utterly unacceptable.

Like many, I spent the last few weeks listening to women share their experience of male violence and intimidation. I have listened both to my colleagues in this Chamber and to the women in my life. In doing this, I have been exposed to another side of the lives of my friends and colleagues, a side I simply can never and will never experience. While I believe all men must continue to do this listening to try to understand what our female friends, family and colleagues go through on a daily basis, I welcome that beyond this listening there is an opportunity for us to continue to act more fervently in this area.

I welcome the progress the Minister, Deputy McEntee, has made ensuring that a new domestic sexual and gender-based violence strategy will be introduced into the Dáil before Easter. I welcome that stalking and non-fatal strangulation will be made criminal offences in the sexual offences Bill which will extend victim anonymity and ensure legal representation for victims. While this legislative work is crucial in creating a zero-tolerance of violence against women, we cannot rely on legislation alone to solve this issue.

Within the last year we have had a very sincere debate on domestic violence in this Chamber. A number of people made very important contributions and I was struck by one by my colleague, Deputy Duncan Smith, from the Labour Party about the need for us men to be role models in our communities at every level. That is something we need to think about and we need to take our work here in the Chamber and more widely in society more seriously and we need to be more thorough. We all have a part to play in improving our solidarity. All of us in the Chamber can and must do our bit. It is the least we can do for Ashling and her family.

The brutal murder of Ashling Murphy shook this country to its core. It was a callous taking of a young life. It behoves us as legislators and as a society to ensure we act now and act decisively to address the deficiencies in the supports for women at risk of violence. What shocked most people was that Ashling was murdered in the early evening on the banks of a canal in a small provincial town. It was not the stereotypical location for a violent murder, but perpetrators of violence against women know no geographical boundaries. The threats are just as real in rural Ireland as they are in large towns and cities.

In County Longford, we are very fortunate that Longford Women's Link has managed a dedicated a domestic violence support service since 1995. Last year, it dealt with 400 women and children and a similar number in the previous year. I acknowledge the ongoing support of the Minister, Deputy McEntee, for the service and her recent statements of intent on the issue of gender violence. If we want to do right by Ashling Murphy's memory, we need to address the inadequacies and shortcomings in the service. Arguably, the biggest issues include the lack of safe accommodation. Not only are refuges needed but also appropriate and secure housing is also needed into the future. In rural areas, transport to access domestic violence support is a huge problem. Obviously, women cannot bring their children with them when they go to the Garda station to make a report and, equally, childminding is as big an issue.

We need to build local networks using services and local knowledge to create an holistic structure to support women and children. In other words, we need to build a one-stop shop structure so that women do not have to access multiple points for support. One of the significant issues arising from Covid is that we are expecting more women to come forward who have been unable to do so until now. People who have experienced intense trauma during the past two years, but have not accessed any services, will need highly specialised support.

It would be a key contributor to a suitable memorial for the late Ashling Murphy if we could say in 12 months' time that we have enhanced and improved domestic violence support services across this country. Anything less than that and we will do Ashling and the grief of a nation a serious disservice.

See this speech in context