Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief. I do not want to repeat what others have said. I welcome the Minister. I particularly thank the advocacy groups for women. They work tirelessly 24 hours a day, seven days a week, all year round. I have had experience of them. I particularly acknowledge the great work done in Laois. In the past two weeks, I have become involved in three or four cases from that area and I know how these groups interface and interplay with our local authorities with regard to supports.

I vary somewhat from other speakers in that I have a different opinion on the calls for refuge places. I am not a great supporter for refuge buildings per se. I do not want people who are victims of domestic violence in institutions; I want them in safe homes. Note that I did not refer to safe houses and used the term "safe homes". In terms of the latter, people can be anonymous in the community because many women have come to me to say that they have opened the door of the refuge to find the person who has inflicted viciousness and anger upon them is outside. We want them in safe communities near the schools their children attend. That is an important point to make.

I note and welcome the Minister's emphasis on supporting a victim's journey because it is a terrible journey.We must remember that, when we talk about a woman who is subject to violence, in many cases, we are talking about a family and children. No child should have to see his or her mother beaten to a pulp in the home. These are not safe homes. That has to be our priority.

I will end by saying that we should support the schools because schools and teachers are sometimes the first outside the home to pick up on these things. Many mothers do not want to admit that their marriages have broken down and that the person that they sometimes love in these rather peculiar relationships perpetrates violence. That is difficult. We should also continue the ongoing training and support for An Garda Síochána. The biggest task for all of us is ending sexual and gender-based violence and abuse for everyone. I will finish on that point. I thank the Minister for his engagement with this ongoing process.