Chris Andrews (Dublin Bay South, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The Bill is very important. As my colleague has said, it is welcome and a positive step in the right direction. I, too, commend the tireless campaigning of Eve McDowell and Una Ring. These women have shown immense bravery and commitment in campaigning for stalking to be a stand-alone offence. Both of them were victims of stalking. They saw at first hand how the charges stalkers face under the current legislation are grossly inadequate. The same is true of the sentencing options. When one reads the accounts of the terror and horror these women endured, it is unimaginable. Una Ring's stalker was eventually caught by the Garda in a surveillance operation while he was breaking into her home with a crowbar and duct tape. His sentence started at nine years but he ended up getting just five years. That is shockingly inadequate justice in the context of the terror that he inflicted.

The Bill provides a legal basis for a stand-alone offence of stalking. It will amend the current offence of harassment and provide for court orders to restrain stalking behaviour, as well as procedural protections for victims during the court process. The Bill also introduces stand-alone offences in respect of non-fatal strangulation and suffocation. The new stalking offence covers any conduct that puts the victim in fear of violence or causes the victim serious alarm and distress that has a substantial adverse impact on his or her usual day-to-day activities. The introduction of special measures in court settings for victims of stalking and non-fatal strangulation has been strongly welcomed. In the context of deeply traumatising acts of violence, these measures will finally prevent accused persons confronting their victims in court. The measures are long overdue. As I stated, I very much welcome the Bill and the zero-tolerance approach being taken in respect of this offence.

I wish to highlight the ongoing street violence on City Quay. Residents have to put up with ongoing street violence and harassment. They are being held hostage. The gardaí in Pearse Street station have done a significant amount and engaged in a meaningful way. Superintendent Dermot McKenna has done a fantastic job in meeting residents, trying to resolve the matter and putting resources into the issue. The local gardaí are doing a fantastic job but they do not have enough resources. More resources need to be put into these communities in order to put an end to this random street violence - some people call it antisocial behaviour - which is having a devastating effect on the City Quay community. I ask the Minister to ensure that resources are put in place to address it.

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