Lynn Boylan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire. I thank Senator Martin for bringing this Bill before the Seanad. Sinn Féin was pleased to sign it and add our names to it. There is a consensus across all political parties that we need to do more in relation to domestic violence in the State. We in this House are quite good at bringing forward legislation and having Members from different political parties cosign it. I have taken note of the Minister's concerns. In the briefing today we heard that the law reform review is nearly ten years old. We have also had the coercive control legislation since then, which treats barring orders in the same way. I take on board the Minister's concern but I hope we can expedite this legislation. In one sense it is similar to the Sinn Féin Bill that was previously before this House that sought to remove HAP as a means of income for those seeking civil legal aid. If it was enacted this legislation would actually have tangible benefits for those who are suffering from domestic violence.

Domestic violence has reached unprecedented levels in this country. The numbers have been stated - 265 women have died violently in this State. Of the women killed, 63% were killed in their own homes, 55% were killed by a partner or an ex, and almost nine out of ten women knew their killer. I am repeating these numbers but they are stark statistics that should make everybody sit up and pay attention.

Other surveys have also been conducted that reflect the impact of domestic violence on children, including the violent killing of children. Most, if not all, of these surveys arise out of violence that happens within the home. Domestic violence is carried out by men on women in the vast number of cases. It is also men on men violence. Women on men violence also takes place. It is quite clear that for many women and for many families the home is not a safe place. It is where the terror reigns for them and it is not a sanctuary. It takes an enormous amount of courage for someone living this nightmare to go to the family courts to seek a protection order from someone with whom they had been in an intimate relationship. It is a very personal thing for the person to go into the courts and put forward all of that and put it out there. It is an adversarial system and it is time consuming for the person who is seeking the order.

It is right to acknowledge recent positive developments in the laws around domestic violence. The Minister has personally taken this as an issue where she wants to see reform. It must be acknowledged that there have been reforms but the one area that has failed to keep pace with those legislative reforms is the area of protection orders. This proposed legislation makes the breach of a protection order a serious offence. It increases the penalties associated with such a breach and it would make it an indictable offence with a sentence of a maximum of five years. The briefing today by senior counsel Keith Walsh and Sarah Benson, CEO of Women's Aid, was really excellent. From what they were telling us it is very clear that the current system is not working. The Minister has acknowledged herself this is an area where we know there has to be change. Mr. Walsh spoke on the stark statistics around protection orders. He said that 10,000 protection orders were granted in 2022 and there were over 5,000 reported incidences of breaches of those protection orders but only 500 convictions. There is a problem in the system. Sarah Benson also highlighted that when Women's Aid did a review of the legislation they found a very high level of dissatisfaction with the current system. Many felt the sanction for breaches was too low and that bail was granted despite the abuser already proving through the breach that they were a threat to that individual.

This legislation needs to be brought in. While it may not be in this current format certainly something needs to happen soon to protect people. We need to have a change in the culture in some areas in the Garda. Again, there has been huge progress in that regard but cultural changes still need to happen. Gardaí need to know that a breach of a protection order is a serious offence and needs to be taken seriously. This is part of what this legislation would do as well.It is welcome that the Minister will not oppose the Bill and that she has accepted it is an area that needs reform. All of us who have co-signed it look forward to working together to ensure that protection orders do what they are supposed to do, which is to protect the victims of domestic violence.