Frank Fahey (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Cathaoirleach for the opportunity to inform the Seanad of progress on this important and serious issue. Domestic violence is too often a hidden crime in our society and we must never lose sight of the fact that it is a crime. Society must treat it as such and must punish offenders most severely. We must create a culture where every man, woman and child enjoys the right to live in peace and harmony in his or her home.

The excellent report published by the National Crime Council last year showed that 15% of women, or some one in seven, and 6% of men, or approximately one in 16, have experienced severely abusive behaviour of a physical, sexual or emotional nature from a partner at some time in their lives. The council noted that while the risk to women as victims is higher, domestic abuse also affects a significant number of men. The survey suggests that in the region of 213,000 women and 88,000 men in Ireland were severely abused by a partner at some point in their lives.

Accordingly, while the focus tends to be on violence against women, we also must ensure that supports are available to men who are victims. We must create a culture where both male and female victims of violence can seek support and redress through the legal system and other support services without experiencing embarrassment and shame.

Much has been achieved since the 1997 Task Force Report on Violence against Women was published as a blueprint, recommending new structures and comprehensive services to bring perpetrators to justice and to support victims. I chair the national steering committee on violence against women, which brings together all the Departments, State bodies and non-governmental organisations which work with victims of violence. As a committee, we work proactively to implement the recommendations of the task force report. I cannot go further without paying tribute to all those in both the voluntary and State sectors who continue to work selflessly with victims of domestic violence.

The Government's key aims in regard to domestic violence are threefold. Our objective is to bring perpetrators to justice; help victims, who are most frequently women, to come forward to seek help and redress, and to provide them with the support they and their families need; and stamp out this dreadful crime by creating awareness among people of all ages, and by changing the culture of anger and violence that can infiltrate intimate partner relationships.

The Department of Health and Children, through the Health Service Executive, makes available some €12 million annually to support services and developments to help combat and respond to domestic violence and sexual assault. The Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government makes capital and current funding available to voluntary housing bodies and local authorities, respectively, for accommodation for homeless persons, which may include persons who are victims of domestic violence. The Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, together with the Garda and the Courts Service, play a major role in the responses to domestic violence of the civil and criminal justice systems.

It is important that perpetrators of domestic violence are brought to justice. It is a difficult crime to deal with, however, because there may be barriers of influence, authority, shame and even affection between the perpetrator and victim, which can militate against reporting and prosecution of the offence. Tackling these barriers is crucial and the Garda Síochána is working to ensure that domestic violence is dealt with as a serious criminal matter. A domestic violence and sexual assault unit was established as a national facility in 1997.

The Garda has a written policy on domestic violence intervention which is arrest oriented and recognises the vulnerable circumstances in which victims find themselves. Any evidence of fear or harassment is brought to the attention of the court in the event of a bail application. This domestic violence policy is an integral part of Garda training and is reinforced continuously. All the feedback on its policy is positive. Nonetheless, the Garda has undertaken a review of its policy with a view to modernising and honing its procedures further.

A strong legal framework for tackling domestic violence is also essential. Under the code of criminal law, there is a range of sanctions the courts can apply in situations involving violence against women. Civil law also provides a range of orders to protect victims from abuse. Contravention of an order under the Acts is an offence and subject to sanctions under the criminal law. Under the Acts, the Garda has powers of arrest without warrant to deal with cases of domestic violence.

Statistics from the Courts Service for 2005 show that 1,037 safety orders, 2,622 protection orders, 550 interim barring orders and 1,265 barring orders were granted last year. The statistics also show that 115 safety orders, 71 protection orders, 34 interim barring orders and 100 barring orders were refused in that year. In addition, 1,714 safety orders, 157 protection orders, 38 interim barring orders and 1,818 barring orders were withdrawn or struck out in 2005.

Although there has been progress, the level of reporting of incidents of domestic violence remains low. The National Crime Council report found that a little less than one quarter of all people surveyed who had experienced severe domestic abuse reported that abuse to the Garda. The reasons for non-reporting are complex, including a belief that the abuse was not serious enough, that it was the victim's fault in some way or that to report it could end the relationship.

This highlights the complexity of the issue and the need to build up the confidence of victims and their awareness of the supports open to them. This is being done in several ways, including the provision of support to victims as they proceed through the legal channels and working with the perpetrators of violence to make them understand the gravity of their violent crimes and to enable them to change their behaviour towards the partner.

The Commission for Support of Victims of Crime within my Department provides funding to Women's Aid and to the rape crisis centres to assist with running court accompaniment services which assist the victims. My Department also funds several perpetrator programmes which are designed to promote changes in personal behaviour and to prevent future abuse. This type of work both here and internationally is relatively new and is far from straightforward. In some instances, however, and with the right safeguards, it has a role to play in tackling domestic violence. We have undertaken a review of the existing programmes, and recommendations are being considered that will guide our policy decisions.

We also funded a pilot domestic violence intervention exercise in the Dún Laoghaire and Bray areas which aimed to work with all the agencies in the locality, including the Garda, Courts Service, and the probation and welfare service to make the criminal justice and other response systems work together better. This project was the subject of an external independent evaluation, and some outstanding tasks are being completed prior to a full consideration of its efficacy.

The 1997 task force also recommended awareness raising programmes to make victims aware of the services that are open to them and to encourage them to take the difficult step of seeking help in dealing with their violent partner. As I mentioned last week in regard to the launch of the latest awareness raising campaign, it is time for everyone to acknowledge that domestic violence is often a hidden crime whose victims may feel ashamed and embarrassed despite their innocence. These victims need the support of friends and family as they address their difficult circumstances.

We must raise awareness of the need to change our culture, in which violence is all too often seen as the choice method of addressing a problem. This requires us to start awareness raising with our youngest children and to inculcate the respect of human rights as a primary goal of our culture. The current national media campaign ties in with the UN's 16 Days campaign and has the key message "Domestic Violence — End the Silence", stressing that free and confidential help and support are just a telephone call away.

This debate is timely. Last year the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform commissioned a study to review the work of the national steering committee on violence against women and the implementation of the 1997 task force report. It was also to develop a new strategic action plan for the committee. The final report from the consultants was recently received in the Department and is under consideration prior to its submission to the national steering committee. Today's debate will further inform our thinking.

The issue of the difficulties faced by various sexual assault treatment units has been raised. Action is being taken following the review commissioned last year. Two new sexual assault treatment units will be established in Galway and the midlands. I have asked the Department of Health and Children to re-examine funding for the Kerry unit which closed down. I have been assured by the HSE that the recent issues in the Rotunda Hospital are not a matter of finance but of a small cohort of doctors trying to cover an out-of-hours rota. The recent delays in sexual assault treatment in the Rotunda, which are unacceptable, have been caused by a shortage of doctors during out-of-hours and weekends. Every effort is being made by the HSE to address this and to ensure adequate staff are in place to provide a service on a 24-hour, seven-day a week basis.

The main problem identified by the review was the shortage of trained staff for this vitally important service to victims of sexual assault. Consequently, more forensic nurses will be trained and will be attached to acute hospitals. This will provide a much better staffing set-up. Extra resources are required and have been provided in the Estimates. The HSE will roll out extra services in the next month.

I accept that in the past several years the amount of money provided to voluntary organisations, such as the Rape Crisis Centre and Women's Aid, by the Department of Health and Children was inadequate. The Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney, is most anxious to address this issue. She has assured me, and the various organisations, that adequate funding is provided in the Estimates for the various organisations to ensure they can continue their work effectively.