Cecilia Keaveney (Fianna Fail)

I, too, welcome the Minister to the House. It has been a while since we had the opportunity to engage in a formal or informal chat in this House, although we chatted many times when I was a Member of the Lower House.

Domestic violence is a serious issue. It is interesting that people associate this issue with females and that one in five women in Ireland will experience domestic violence. The Women's Aid, 16 Days of Action campaign, which is drawing to a close, has been good. It is important, therefore, this issue is brought to the fore in this and the other House, as it is every year. I commend those people in my constituency, including in Inishowen and Letterkenny, who work on behalf of women in County Donegal who experience domestic violence. I am not suggesting domestic violence relates exclusively to females but it is in the main females who are so affected. As pointed out in the campaign, one must consider that this might be happening to one's mother, sister or friend.

It is important people are listened to and are not judged. They must also be allowed to make decisions and be assisted in making those decisions and encouraged to attend their general practitioners, the Garda, solicitors or anyone from whom they might reasonably expect help. We have only recently learned of the awfulness of clerical sexual abuse. Previous to this we have had reports on various types of sexual abuse. Domestic violence is sexual violence against partners. We must find a mechanism, be it in the domestic violence or sexual abuse field, which encourages young people and adults to come forward and admit what is happening. It is too late to do so 20 or 30 years on, whether such abuse is in the home or outside it.

I was shocked to hear on Saturday that a majority of people do not report that they have been raped. I was eager to come into this House and speak about this issue. However, this morning I heard a report to the effect that many people who reported rape had engaged in binge drinking. There appears to be an attempt to link both factors and to assume that because a person drank alcohol, she had left herself open to being raped. This has as much an implication for domestic violence as it has for any other rape situation. It has been proven that most rapes occur between two people who know each other. No one knows each other better than do partners and husbands and wives.

Some of the statistics we have heard during the 16 Days of Action campaign are that 25% of all violent crimes reported involve a man assaulting his wife or partner and that physical violence is right up there in terms of the types of violence involved. Domestic violence has massive implications for society, including social - I am glad the Minister for Social and Family Affairs is present in the House this evening - in terms of obtaining housing to keep people separate from each other to ensure the abuse does not continue. There is much evidence to suggest the time when people are separated is as dangerous as any other time.

I am not sure whether the Minister's response will include answers to the types of issues raised by Women's Aid. An issue of concern to them is that the national budget for 2010 is under threat. The national freefone helpline and support services are a lifeline for people living with domestic violence. This organisation experienced cutbacks in funding in 2009 and believes that national and local domestic violence support services could be under threat of cuts of up to 18% in 2010.

The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre dealt with 9,487 counselling calls in 2008, 86% of which were from females. I could provide statistics that would keep us going for an hour. However, I have only five minutes in which to deal with this issue. I want to place on record that I value the work being done in regard to domestic violence. When I heard that a domestic violence support service was to be established in my constituency I thought it would not work and that people would not use it. However, it is being widely used, although this is not necessarily a reflection on society in the county. It is important that we recognise that people are only now confident to admit what is happening in their homes. For many generations, people did not speak about what went on in their homes because it was an admission of some darker deed. However, these types of darker deeds in our society are now coming into the open.

I ask that the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform consider the issues being raised under the Civil Partnership Bill 2009 and their implications, according to Women's Aid, for cohabitants and their children. I look forward to hearing the Minister's response. While I know this issue is not centrally related to her Department, it touches on some areas of it. We should use every opportunity to encourage people to use all available resources to ensure this is not allowed to continue within society as an acceptable form of treatment of any woman.