Denise Mitchell (Dublin Bay North, Sinn Fein)

It was very upsetting to read in the Women's Aid annual report that the organisation has received the highest number of domestic abuse reports in its 50-year history. While I acknowledge the work of the previous Minister, Deputy McEntee, we have a lot more to do. When it comes to domestic refuge spaces this Government is still failing in its legal obligation to provide them. This is incredibly important because at a time when we have a housing crisis we have a situation where victims are becoming trapped. Their options are either to stay in an abusive situation or become homeless. This is totally unacceptable. The report also found that 44% of those who reported a domestic violence incident to gardaí said they found them unhelpful. This must change. Gardaí must be trained in how to deal with a report of domestic abuse. We need to see an urgency in perpetrators being charged and brought before the courts because it can often take many years for these matters to even reach the courts. The argument for a domestic violence register is an extremely important one when it comes to protecting women from repeat offenders and ensuring gardaí are aware of where known abusers live or if they have moved into our communities. It is welcome everyone here is on the same page but we need to see more action. We need a society where every public space, community centre, sports club, pub, shop and home is a zero tolerance space when it comes to domestic and gender-based violence.

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