Caít Keane (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister and thank her for bringing forward the Bill. I welcome the representatives of the various organisations in the Visitors Gallery, including the Immigrant Council of Ireland, Ruhama, Dublin Rape Crisis Centre and ICTU.

I am not a member of the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, but I would like to congratulate its members on their preliminary work and the report they published. I have read the report and it is good that representatives of both sides of the debate were recognised, had an input and appeared before the committee. Appendix 6 is a list of all the organisations concerned. Voices were heard and there cannot be a good or an informed debate without hearing from all sides. That is why I welcome Senator David Norris's contribution. The committee heard from all sides and I congratulate its members on their input.

I welcome Fianna Fáil's support for the Bill. While I was in my office listening to the beginning of the debate, I had a different impression listening to one of the other Members. There is free speech in every party and I thank Senator Denis O'Donovan for outlining the party's support.

I have taken an interest in this issue because everybody in Ireland has done so, particularly women. As I look around the House, I congratulate the men sitting on the opposite benches. Women sell their bodies and men pay for them, but money is freely available, while one's consent and precious body is one's alone. Women suffer in this regard, but men pay with money.

The Bill comprises seven Parts and 45 sections. Senator David Norris concentrated on sections 20 and 21 in Part 3. While they are among the most important, there are other important provisions which should be commended and lauded. Part 2 details protections for children from sexual exploitation. Contacting a child for the purpose of sexual exploitation will become punishable by law, with the invitation to sexual touching and causing a child to watch sexual activity. Children can be spared the trauma of abuse by the recognition that sexually suggestive language and other pervasive actions by adults are used to groom children for the purposes of sex. Part 2 also includes a provision on the age of consent, which remains 17 years. When the Bill is enacted, a consensual act engaged in by two minors within two years in age of each other will no longer be treated as sexual abuse or rape of a minor. Senator Hildegarde Naughton referred to the definition of "consent". We have all received representations on the lack of a definition in the Bill. One in Four, in particular, made representations on the issue.

I welcome section 8 which strengthens provisions on the use of IT to facilitate sexual exploitation. Technology is like a second hand to children who are more familiar with it than adults.

Part 3 relates to the payment of adults for sexual services and has generated the most discussion.The Bill criminalises the buying of sex but not the sale of sex. The latter aspect remains. The crucial change is for the good of women. As a woman speaking on this subject, some women, for whatever reason, feel the need to sell sex but perhaps they have been pushed to their limits. Whether their consent is freely given is questionable. Some people think prostitution is an easy way to make money. Consent is an issue and questions arise for many as to whether women truly have free will in respect of this matter. This legislation represents a key development in the national conversation on consent.

There is a key distinction between the decriminalisation of the person selling sex and decriminalisation of the industry. Our society judges the buying of consent to be morally and legally wrong. With the enactment of the legislation before us, women who sell sex will no longer be judged as the wrongdoers in this exchange, rather the buyer will be so judged. The legislation will send a clear message to boys and men that consent is important and cannot be traded like a cheap commodity. The duty of An Garda Síochána will revolve around the protection, rather than the punishment, of women who chose to be involved in such sexual activities, which is a welcome development. The training and education of gardaí will be critical. The message is that consent should be contemplated within the larger conversation relating to this matter.

Section 21 relates to the amendment of section (5) of the 2008 Act and refers to where it is known that a person receives payment for sexual activity in cases where an individual has been trafficked. I know about this matter because I am a member of the North-South body that conducted a report into trafficking. This new and stringent provision is most welcome.