Lisa Chambers (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

-----and one I strongly disagree with. That, to me, is undermining the Judiciary on the floor of this House. It is seeking to undermine all those cases that have been prosecuted to date because of the failure of the Department of Justice to act on a five-year-old recommendation and a law that is already in place in other jurisdictions which we commonly followed for more than a decade. I suggest the Department and the Minister for Justice should reflect upon that particular sentence. It should be retracted, in my view, because it is a very serious allegation to make.

The Government concluded that there was "no clear benefit to be gained by a stand-alone stalking offence". Again, based on what? Who is deciding this? I ask that the Department reflect and consider the testimony and lived experience of those who have experienced stalking. The Minister of State said again that the offence of harassment was "successfully securing convictions" under the current law. That is because there are no other options.

I will finish on this. One thing that was not dealt with is moving away from the importance of language and using the word "stalking" so that when victims reach out to try to find information, at least they can find it, they can know it exists and, as other speakers have discussed, they are not second-guessing themselves and asking if they are actually experiencing a crime or if it is all in their heads. It is not all in their head and they are experiencing a crime. Our laws just do not cater for it.

What was not dealt with adequately, however, was the impact that legislation for stalking had in the other jurisdictions, namely, England, Scotland and Wales, which experienced a trebling in reporting of stalking incidences and a doubling of charges being brought against the perpetrators. They are the tangible impacts of legislating and that has not been addressed. All we have heard is the Department reiterating time and again that it has decided what is best, that it is not going to listen to victims and that it has decided that the law, as it stands, is satisfactory. My message for the Minister of State tonight to take back to the Minister for Justice is that it is not satisfactory. Coco's Law does not cut the mustard. It does not cover the experience of the victims.

I will finish by thanking all of my colleagues, cross-party, for supporting the Bill tonight. In particular, I thank Senator Keogan for sharing her personal experience. I ask that the Minister of State relay to the Minister for Justice that a period of reflection might happen over the next while so that when I get to move this legislation forward from this House to the next, we can see it progressed quickly. I thank the Acting Chairperson for his leniency.