Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and commend my colleagues, in particular Senators Moloney and O'Keeffe, on proposing and seconding the motion. It is very important that we take time to review the way in which the Government is dealing with the very serious incidence of domestic violence.

We have taken time to commend what the Government has been doing. The Minister set out very clearly and comprehensively the measures it is adopting, but we also need, as he said, to contribute to the debate on a codifying piece of legislation on domestic violence which the Minister, Deputy Shatter, has promised, and on which he is working. There have been a number of reforms, which are welcome, but they have been made on a very piecemeal basis. It would be of great benefit to everyone, in particular victims and survivors of abuse, if we could introduce a complete statute in which all protections and supports for survivors and victims are set out.

Senator Moloney's comment on introducing a new offence specifically to deal with domestic violence is one that should be given serious consideration. The label "domestic" is difficult and problematic, and there is a good deal of literature on that point. There is also the problem that few acts of so-called domestic violence are isolated events and, like offences of harassment or stalking, the criminal law, which is designed to deal with one-off offences, is not best suited to deal with it. It is something with which we have to grapple. It is a bigger question which can only be dealt with in codifying legislation, but as our motion suggests there are also many other aspects to dealing with domestic violence, alongside criminal legislation. We are very grateful to the Minister of State for addressing other aspects, such as funding for support services, training, monitoring and the need to tackle the perpetrators and prevent the abuse from occurring in the first place, and the need to focus Government policy on that, something which the Minister of State, Deputy Lynch, has spoken about extensively.