Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Will the Leader arrange a debate on the issue of domestic violence following the launch of the report this morning by SAFE Ireland on lawlessness in the home? I was honoured to be invited to launch the report for SAFE Ireland at the Royal Irish Academy. Powerful testimony was given by a survivor of domestic violence and others who had worked on the report.There were some important findings on the inadequacies of the criminal justice and policing system with respect to how we dealt with domestic violence. Some very important recommendations on reforms were also made. The report builds on the work of the Oireachtas justice committee which produced a report last October on the issues of domestic and sexual violence. Other colleagues in the House and I were involved in the compilation of that report. There is also the Garda inspectorate's report from November 2014 which pointed to how policing practice should be improved in dealing with cases of domestic violence. I, therefore, ask the Leader for a debate in early course on domestic violence and, in particular, the recommendations made in the SAFE Ireland report.