Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On behalf of the Minister, Deputy Stephen Donnelly, I thank the Deputy for raising this important topic. It is a terrible reality that sexual assault and violence continue within our society. The 2022 annual report for sexual assault treatment units, SATUs, in Ireland is yet to be finalised but the provisional data for 2022 show that approximately 1,050 people attended across the six units in Ireland in that year. This represents an increase of 191, or 22%, on the 2021 attendance figure of 859. I note that the 2018 and 2019 attendance figures were almost identical at 941 and 943, respectively. The 2022 figure shows an increase of almost 110, or 12%, on both 2018 and 2019. This 12% increase over the four-year period since 2018 gives perhaps the most balanced view of trends over recent years and should be viewed through the lens of work we are doing across government to encourage more victims to come forward to seek supports and report these heinous crimes.

Sexual violence is defined as any sexual act performed on the victim without consent. SATUs support people who have experienced rape or sexual assault and provide responsive and person-focused care for people aged 14 years and older who have experienced sexual violence. There are six SATUs throughout Ireland located in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Mullingar, Letterkenny and Waterford. Each unit aims to provide care 24 hours a day, seven days a week and respond within three hours to ensure that people can access care in a timely fashion, as set out in the 2023 publication, Sexual Assault Treatment Unit National Guidelines on Referral and Forensic Clinical Examination Following Rape and Sexual Assault. The SATUs are geographically distributed to enable any patient nationally to access the service within a three-hour window, optimising both the health and criminal justice responses to sexual crimes. The Government has always been very clear that regardless of the circumstances in which sexual violence has occurred, a victim of these crimes can and should report their experience to An Garda Síochána.

Victims of these crimes also have the option of calling the excellent front-line services provided by organisations such as the Rape Crisis Centre, which offer non-judgmental support, a listening ear and information. Their services are for both women and men and the work they do in this difficult space needs to be commended. The services provided by SATUs have two main components: the provision of health and supportive care, and the collection of forensic evidence. SATUs are the key health sector supports available to victims of rape and sexual assault. Responsibility for responding to sexual violence is shared across government.

The Government's commitment to tackling the issue of sexual violence is further demonstrated by the publication of the O'Malley review implementation plan, Supporting A Victim’s Journey: A Plan to Help Victims and Vulnerable Witnesses in Sexual Violence Cases, and the work being progressed through the third national strategy on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, which was launched last year. Through the Supporting a Victim's Journey plan, a number of recommendations to support victims of sexual crime have been progressed, including recommendations on the investigation and prosecution of sexual offences, the introduction of trained intermediaries, training for front-line professionals and actions to reduce delays in the trial process.

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