Paul McAuliffe (Dublin North-West, Fianna Fail)

I also join others in calling out the scourge of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in our society. It should be called out at all junctures - in WhatsApp groups, in sports clubs, in our local pubs and here in the Dáil. I acknowledge the work of the Minister's predecessor, Deputy McEntee, in terms of the legislation, which Deputy Connolly has previously referenced, and also the structural changes and the funding that has gone with it. As has also been referenced, this is an increasing phenomenon. Local gardaí raised it specifically with us in our local policing forum when they talked about areas of crime which were expanding. Women's Aid highlighted that in its annual report when it referred to getting over 40,000 disclosures during 28,000 contacts. That would amount to an 18% increase in disclosures of domestic abuse. It is very clear that we have taken measures but we have to do more and we need to continue to do more. I also particularly welcome the attempts to try to capture what is happening. I understand the CEO is now working on a domestic violence survey to provide more accurate prevalence data to follow on from previous sexual violence studies, which have dated over time. I believe Cuan is involved in that too.

I wish to focus on an area the Minister and I have worked on for some time and that is the issue of Jennie's law. Jennie's brother Jason has been a tireless advocate for his sister and for their family who had direct impact with a most extreme outcome, the death of their sister. I thank the Minister for the work he has done along with Senator O'Loughlin and Jason to try to progress a Bill which would provide a register to put in place information that future victims may be able to avail of. In a modern world with lots of rights and balancing of those rights, it can be difficult to put in place such a register but I know the Minister is determined to do that along with his other Government colleagues.

Jennie was a wonderful young woman. She was from Finglas, beloved by her local GAA club Erin's Isle. She was a home care worker. She had two children who are now looked after by the Poole family. Sometimes, in all of the discussion around Jennie's law, Jennie's own memory is forgotten but the Poole family are determined not to allow that happen. Even the very description of the new legislation coming through and that it would be known as Jennie's law is very important to the family. What is more important to them is that the law will have a direct impact on those people who may be impacted in the future. When Jason first came to meet myself and some of my colleagues, the Minister will remember Jason also spoke about other areas where we could improve the response to domestic violence and the outcomes of families who are impacted by it.

Some of those measures have been taken, for example around the custody of children where a partner may be indicted in the crime of murder against their parent. However, there remains others, perhaps more societal steps, which we have to take too. I refer to the calling out of what might be called micro-aggressions. If you are old-fashioned you would just call it unacceptable behaviour. Often among young men, those types of unacceptable comments can develop but young men want to be empowered to call that stuff out too. I call out organisations like the GAA in particular, which is doing a huge among of work to empower young men. This is not about targeting or stigmatising young men. It is about empowering them to call out what they know to be behaviour that is unacceptable. It is a spectrum of offences we are talking about here and I am not conflating them in any way.

It is about calling out unacceptable behaviour against women at a young age with trusted organisations on the ground and funding those organisations to support them to do it. We need to work with youth centres, which are right across our communities doing that work. This is a much bigger societal issue. Those conversations need to happen alongside the very necessary legislative and structural changes the Department is making. I thank the Minister for his support.

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