Thomas Byrne (Meath East, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As I noted earlier, the Minister is at a Cabinet meeting. That is why he cannot be here and it is only fair to put that on the record.

A key overarching goal for the zero tolerance strategy is to ensure every woman and child who needs a refuge space gets one and the Government continues to work towards that. In the most recent budget, domestic, sexual and gender-based violence funding was increased to €70 million. This is more than treble what was available at the start of the previous Government's term and is a further significant increase for this year.

The increased funding for Cuan to almost €67 million includes additional funding for refuge spaces. The review of the provision of accommodation for victims of domestic violence published by Tusla in February 2022 highlights that almost three quarters of the population of the State is within 30 minutes of a refuge location. Cuan is acutely aware of the need to improve on this and ensure services are accessible to everybody, including those living in rural areas and in Cavan and Monaghan. Achieving this, including through the completion of a national services development plan, is a core objective of Cuan's plan for 2025 to 2027, which was published at the end of last year. Alongside refuges, a further 20 safe homes are in the pipeline for development. Once complete, they will bring the national total to 72.

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