Michael Collins (Cork South West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

In recent years, there has been a big rise in the number of abuse cases against women and children in Ireland. This shows that we urgently need to make big changes in the criminal justice system to deal with this problem.

People have been upset by some recent decisions about punishments for people found guilty of violence against women and other violent crimes. The Natasha O'Brien case is clear evidence of that. There is growing worry about the practice of giving suspended sentences to people found guilty of violent crimes. The Director of Public Prosecutions can ask for a review of sentences if she thinks they are too lenient. In 2022, the DPP made 37 such appeals to the Court of Criminal Appeal, 30 of which were successful.

The Judicial Council Act 2019 set up the sentencing guidelines and information committee but there is still a lot of work to do to make sure sentencing guidelines are published to deal with violence against women in Ireland. We need to take many different actions, including making changes to the law, giving more money to support services and changing society. The Government also needs to take strong action, including putting into action the recommendations of the Citizens' Assembly on Gender Equality and the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Gender Equality, reviewing sentencing practices and making sure there are enough refuge places in line with the Istanbul Convention. Only by doing all of these can Ireland hope to effectively fight against the violence against women and make sure justice is done for all victims and survivors. Parents should not have to warn their daughters every time they want to go to an event or go outside the door.

We need only look at the Sophie Toscan du Plantier case in my community in west Cork to see how it has gone. The Garda Commissioner has a cold case review under way. For how long do these reviews have to go on? The family needs justice for that woman. I have brought this case up in the House on numerous occasions but my voice is falling on deaf ears. The Minister for Justice needs to deal with that case.

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