Seanad debates
Wednesday, 2 July 2025
Domestic Violence (Amendment) Bill 2024: Committee Stage
2:00 am
Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
We will now address the Domestic Violence (Amendment) Bill 2024 on Committee Stage. This has been restored from the previous Seanad, just to put it in context.
Nicole Ryan (Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I move amendment No. 1:
In page 3, between lines 20 and 21, to insert the following: “(1B) Where a child is present during the commission of an offence under subsection (1), this shall be considered an aggravating factor for the purposes of sentencing.”.”.
It is lovely to have the Minister of State here today to take this. I thank the cross-party group for bringing this Bill forward.
Sometimes people forget that before we ever became politicians or got into politics, we have lived lives and had experiences. That shapes how we see the world and how we are in society, how we act and how we move. For me, this amendment is very important because in the last couple of weeks we have been talking about the survivors of residential abuse. We talked about intergenerational trauma and how that does not just affect the person who is the survivor but also boils down and filters through to different generations.
As strong as my mother is, and she is a fantastic woman, she has endured quite a lot in her life. She was a victim of domestic abuse, but that domestic abuse does not stop with her because the trauma passed on through the generations to me and my sibling. I want to acknowledge that sometimes children of abuse are not factored into legislation.
From the ages of four to seven, I lived in a home that was very violent. As a child, when you are developing through that stage, it shapes how you see the world, move through it and grow into that. Thankfully, my mother was able to get out of that situation but none of us got out unscathed, and that is the reality. The perpetrator never carries the shame when they commit an act of violence against somebody. The shame is always given to the victim, and that shame gets passed on. For me, it shaped how I saw the world and how I trusted people in regard to the most minute things in life.
For two decades I lived in the shadow of that shame of what had happened, and it was incredibly difficult. As a child, you learn how to see signs and read people and understand, even from something as small as knowing the kind of mood he would be in by the way his foot would cross the threshold of the front door. I would understand that laughing sometimes or playing too loudly could be a trigger, or that if the house was not clean enough, that would mean my mother would get abuse. Stuff like that carried through to me because I am very fixated, even now, about cleanliness and having everything perfect. That is still with me today and that will be with me forever. The shame I carried was really difficult in my formative and teenage years and into adulthood. It shaped how I trusted people and how I saw things. It makes you hypervigilant to every situation, which is really sad because it makes you untrusting even of love. You see everything as danger and you know how to read people, and that is not a great thing. I was always a woman before I was ever a child. I always wanted to just be a child, and that was not afforded to me, unfortunately.
After two decades of living in that shame and fear that people would know what had happened, I finally then was able to get help therapeutically, not for a want but more for a need because as a therapist you have to be able to help yourself before you can help others. It was the first time that I had gone to my therapist. A few months after I had met him, he asked me what I thought he thought of me. I said I thought he thought I would be strong, because that is what I have always had all my life: "You are so strong. How do you do it?" He said, "Actually, when I first met you, you looked so fragile that if I was to touch you, you would fall apart", and for the first time in my life, somebody saw me. Somebody saw what I had been through. Somebody saw the trauma it had caused.
This amendment for me is personal but equally, it is personal to a lot of children, families and mothers and men, who also experience domestic violence, to make sure that it is an aggravating factor. We were never hurt physically but emotionally we were, and we carry those scars. That does need to be an aggravating factor when it comes to sentencing somebody who is getting sentenced for domestic violence because I will still carry those scars with me for the rest of my life, and the only thing I can do to play my part in fixing this is to end it with me and try not to pass it down to future generations of children I might have. I am really thankful to the cross-party group for giving me this opportunity, and for giving that seven-year-old little girl a voice, the chance to share her story and the chance to stand up for all the other young children out there who are living in these homes at this time. I thank the Minister of State for accepting this amendment.
Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank Senator Ryan for a very powerful contribution this afternoon. Senator Noonan is indicating that he wants to contribute to the discussion on this amendment.
Malcolm Noonan (Green Party)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I do not have much to say after that. I thank Senator Ryan for sharing her experience with us. It brings into perspective why we are here this evening. We know that so many families are affected through domestic violence and children in particular are affected greatly. This Bill, first introduced by my colleague Vincent P. Martin in the previous Seanad, had got us to Committee Stage. I thank Senator Clonan and my cross-party colleagues for agreeing to use this slot to bring the Bill forward. Now we see why it is so important.
I also acknowledge the presence in the Public Gallery of Sarah Benson from Women’s Aid. Women's Aid has been championing this piece. It is a small change in our legislation that will help so many women and children and families who are in that awful situation of domestic violence to move into a safe place and brighter future.It is difficult to articulate my feelings even from my notes on this issue but it is important to do so following Senator Ryan's contribution because that was so powerful and so important to put context on this powerful legislation. In 2022, the last year I have statistics from, over 10,000 domestic violence protective orders were issued with approximately 5,000 breaches reported. Half of them were breached. Despite the scale of the issue, only 500 convictions followed those breaches. In the same year, there were 54,000 Garda call-outs relating to domestic violence. It is of epidemic proportions.
In terms of the current legal framework, the Minister of State will be well aware that breaches of domestic violence are prosecuted only summarily in the District Court. This one-size-fits-all approach does not reflect the seriousness or complexity of cases. This proposed Bill introduces a hybrid approach allowing more tailored responses to different levels of severity. Multiple or serious breaches of protective orders are not uncommon yet current laws limit the ability to pursue more serious charges. The amendment includes a number of key changes. Prosecutors will have the discretion to bring indictable charges for breaches where appropriate. Indictable charges are more serious and allow for more robust court responses. With regard to the implications for bail, in summary cases bail can only be refused in limited circumstances putting victims at potential risk while awaiting trial. Indictable charges would give courts greater power to refuse bail and to consider an accused person's prior record or other charges. The current penalty under section 33 of the Domestic Violence Act 2018 for breaching a domestic violence order is a maximum sentence of 12 months' imprisonment. The proposed legislation would increase the maximum penalty to not greater than five years better aligning the punishment with the severity of the offence and improving prosecution for victims. I hope the Minister of State has positive news for us on allowing the Bill to progress. Our party group supports the amendment brought forward by our colleague Senator Ryan. I look forward to other member's contributions.
Patricia Stephenson (Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I want to confirm that we are just speaking on the amendment.
Patricia Stephenson (Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I commend Senator Ryan on her bravery and honesty. It is very difficult to speak about personal issues in the Chamber. It takes incredible strength so well done and thank you. It is important that people do because it adds so much colour and weight to what we are talking about. So often we talk about these things in legalese terms and it loses the meaning in many ways. As Senator Ryan stated, intergenerational trauma is real. People can find themselves in recurring patterns of abusive relationships when they have witnessed abuse as children. That is a common trend and a normal thing to happen. This is particularly the case if people do not have access to proper therapy. We know we have challenges in Ireland when it comes to people being able to access mental health supports. This amendment is so important because it takes the family as a whole unit and in its broadest sense. When a child witnesses domestic violence, that is a form of child abuse. That is why this amendment should be accepted.
Tom Clonan (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I support Senator Ryan and the amendment she has brought forward. It is a reminder of how intimate gender-based violence is and how the family is often the locus of this type of gender-based violence in our society. We have a serious endemic and persistent problem with gender-based violence. This struck me as I listened to the Senator.
I grew up in a matriarchal household with three sisters and my mum. My granny also lived with us. Now I am a proud father of a daughter. She is 21 and working in Corfu for the summer. One of my recurring fears relates to the steps she has to take to protect herself. When she was 15 or 16, I used to beep the horn at her when I would pass by. One evening she said, "Don't beep the horn at me". I asked was it so embarrassing because I was her dad and she said it was because men beep the horn at her all the time. She said that she and her friends wear earphones. They might not be listening to music but if someone beeps their horn or makes a comment, they do not have to look respond. My daughter will not use the DART because she tells me that the stations are dangerous. If something happens on a DART carriage there is nowhere to turn. She takes the bus because if something happens at least she can scream at the driver and get them to stop the bus. My sons are bouncing around the place living their best lives. They do not live in the same space that my daughter does. What Senator Ryan has shared is so important because this is a significant problem that we have. I support her amendment and the Bill. In what is a patriarchal and paternalistic society, we have to do everything in our power to signal that we have zero tolerance for domestic abuse. I express my support for and solidarity with the Senator.
Joe Conway (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context
Unfortunately I was not here for Senator's Ryan's contribution, which I am picking up from subsequent speakers was poignant and harrowing. Agus é sin ráite, tá fadhb agam leis an leasú seo. I have a couple of problems with the language in this amendment. In this country the legal definition of a "child" is anyone up to the age of 18. I also have a problem with the use of the word "shall" in the amendment. I am going to paint for the House a brief scenario of a father effecting domestic violence against his partner or wife. They have one son who is aged 17. He is there to do his utmost to defend his mum. The way the amendment is drafted that child will then be considered as an aggravating factor in the domestic violence because the word "shall" is used. The amendment should have the word "may" in view of the fact that the legal age for children is 18. The enforcement of the word "shall" is very dangerous from a legal point of view.
Sarah O'Reilly (Aontú)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I support the Bill and the amendment. I commend Senator Ryan on her powerful testimony. The report from Women's Aid makes for difficult reading. More women contacted the organisation last year than ever before. I have been reading the details of the report and they are shocking. I agree with this amendment in that if children are present that factor should be considered when the sentence is being decided. Well done to Senator Ryan. The report from Women's Aid talks about women who have experienced miscarriages as a result of the domestic abuse inflicted on them. It talks about hyper-vigilance, just as Senator Ryan did, and homelessness arising from the abuse. A third of all the women abused were abused by an ex-partner. More were subjected to surveillance and weapons. In some cases, women were threatened with the lives of their children by their abuser. That is evil. The report also stated that approximately 40 women said they did not have a positive experience with An Garda Síochána. This is also shocking. We know how hard it is to escape abuse, talk to authorities and seek help. This needs to be addressed. People talk about having zero tolerance for domestic violence but at the moment we are tolerating this abuse. Aontú wants to see increased sentencing and mandatory minimum sentences for those who threaten their victims with the lives of their children or who abuse a woman to the extent that she miscarries. I support the amendment.
Garret Kelleher (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context
Even though we are often on opposing sides, I join colleagues in commending the bravery of Senator Ryan. It was, without doubt, one of the most powerful contributions I have heard since coming into this Chamber. I thank her for her contribution and for putting it into context. We can sometimes be removed from issues we are discussing but the Senator's contribution was very real and very brave. I thank her for saying what she said, wish her every success and sincerely hope the amendment is accepted.
Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
Thank you very much, Senator Kelleher. I welcome Norah Patten. I think that is her in the green in the corner. She is very welcome. She is Ireland's first woman astronaut and is the special guest in our Visitors Gallery. I thank her for joining us.
Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I welcome the Minister of State back to the House. Like Senator Noonan, I pay tribute to our former colleague, Vincent P. Martin, who initiated this legislation in the last term. I commend him on that.
I commend Senator Ryan on her contribution. I am sorry she had to go through what she went through. I can only imagine the pain and suffering she endured. Her sharing of that this afternoon is one of the most powerful contributions I have heard in the Seanad, and it is my third term here. I commend her on her bravery and strength. She has turned out to be a fine young lady and Sinn Féin is lucky to have somebody of her calibre in its ranks. I take my hat off and salute her contribution.
As a man, I must say the statistics that come out in relation to domestic violence are truly shocking. I am saddened that there are men out there who continue to offend in the manner in which they do. That is truly shocking. We can talk about the gaps in refuge for domestic violence sufferers. There are gaps there, although thankfully Government is moving to address those. We can talk about increased sentences and it is proper that we should have that conversation, but the conversation should really focus on why this continues to happen at the scale it does. Clearly, more needs to be done by way of education. It is okay to deal with the symptoms of the problem, that is, more domestic violence refuge centres. They are very welcome, but the fact a woman should be the first person out of the family home is something that needs to be looked at. She should be the last person out of the family home, not the first person.
We men need to look in the mirror and have a good, hard look at ourselves. As Senator Clonan outlined, the simple act of whistling at a female as she walks down the street should not be acceptable and is not acceptable. For a man, it is difficult to understand this is still going on in this day and age. You need to walk in a woman's shoes in order to experience this. I have a daughter living in the city and I relate to Senator Clonan's contribution because she tells me the same stories. It is clearly not good enough. As men, we need to take a good, hard look in the mirror, cop ourselves on and stop this. That is where I would like to see attention focused, going forward.
Back to the business of this evening, I am delighted on behalf of our party to support this amendment. I look forward to the Minister of State's contribution shortly. I commend Senator Ryan again on her contribution. I would be delighted to see this legislation go through the House as quickly as possible.
Laura Harmon (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank Senator Ryan for her extremely powerful contribution. I am sure people watching will identity with that. She eloquently put forward how this impacts children and adults in this country. Gender-based and domestic violence is an epidemic in Ireland. It needs to be addressed and we need to seriously improve and step up to the mark in supporting survivors and those affected by it. That is what this Bill seeks to do. I will speak to the substantive Bill later.
The Cross-Party Group is accepting this important and considered amendment. It will strengthen the legislation and it is vital that we accept it. I was struck by figures from Women's Aid published recently on disclosures it received last year. Its CEO, Sarah Benson, is in the Gallery. It received 41,432 disclosures of abuse against women and 5,333 disclosures of abuse against children. That was a 17% increase on the previous year. This affects whole families and can have lifelong effects, as Senator Ryan so eloquently described, on the person experiencing domestic violence in the home. I was particularly struck by what the Senator said about its effect on future relationships, the issue of hypervigilance, having to monitor your surroundings and situations and living in constant fear or in fight-or-flight mode in everyday life. It is important we accept this amendment.
Nessa Cosgrove (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I commend my fellow Senator, Nicole Ryan, on her honesty and bravery and for bringing home the importance of not only this Bill but also this amendment. I worked with children and young people in child protection for many years and I could see the shame she was talking about. I could see the realisation that "My house isn't like everyone else's house" and the long-term trauma caused as a result. Senator Ryan is fantastic. That is why she is a great Senator and will continue to be. It is for her bravery and her honesty. I hope this will be considered.
Eileen Flynn (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I did not get to hear all of Senator Ryan's speech this evening due to a committee meeting but, having listened to my colleagues in the House, I will listen back to it later. I grew up on a halting site with 73 extended families. Today there are about 20 extended families on the site. It is funny how, in some communities, domestic violence is seen to be part of the culture. I have said in this House numerous times that domestic violence is not part of my culture. It is not part of Traveller culture or our way of life. I spoke in this House about when Mary Robinson came in. I met Mary Robinson when I was six years of age, in a women's refuge in Rathmines with my mother, brothers and sisters. I ended up in the Seanad. Sometimes we mistreat and misunderstand young children in these institutions. They need safe refuge, safe services and domestic violence services that understand that all communities do not see it as a way of life. I remember in the early nineties when my mother called the Garda and she wanted a barring order against my father. I remember the garda saying, "That's part of your culture. We don't interfere in family affairs, blahdy blah." It is now 2025 and there are great people in the House and the Dáil. We no longer accept domestic violence as a way of life in this country. Every single amendment, Bill and bit of funding and support we can provide as a country is worthwhile because young people like Senator Ryan grow up and come here. Young people like me can grow up and not just be products of a dysfunctional house with domestic violence. We can have meaningful participation in society and know what it is like to be a young child who has been institutionalised. We can know there is still hope. The Bill and amendment give hope to every child out there. It will not make any of the services less approachable. It is positive legislation and a positive amendment. It would be a shame if we did not accept it. I thank the Chair for giving me the time. I probably went way over.
Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank the Senator for her powerful contribution. As it is Committee Stage, if people indicate, I will allow them to come back in.
Patricia Stephenson (Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I appreciate the intervention of Senator Comyn, but the legal age for children is 18 for a reason. We deem anyone under 18 as a child and it is not appropriate for us to make a distinction between a younger or older child when they are witnessing domestic abuse. A boy of 17, an example the Senator gave, watching his mother being abused will suffer long-term psychological trauma. We spoke about hypervigilance, coercive control and a child perhaps being abused but there being no evidence that can be brought forward in a case. The exclusion of children because we deign them to be older children is deeply inappropriate. A 17-year-old as a child in law for a reason.
Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank Senator Stephenson for her work on this Bill and Senator Ryan for her amendment and sharing her personal experiences and insights. I thank all Members for their contributions.
On the proposed amendment, while I acknowledge it is Senator Stephenson's Bill, the proposed amendment is accepted. Legal advice will, of course, be required to allow for due consideration. It is also important to emphasise that the conduct of any court case is a matter entirely for the presiding judge. The courts are subject only to the Constitution and law, independent in their exercise of their judicial functions, including sentencing.
More generally, section 1 seeks to amend section 33 of the Domestic Violence Act 2018 to make provision for an indictable offence under that section. It will make the breach of a domestic violence order, namely, safety orders, barring orders, protection orders, interim barring orders and emergency banning orders a hybrid offence that could be triable summarily or on indictment, with a maximum penalty on indictment of five years' imprisonment. Currently, the penalty for the offence is a class B fine set at a maximum of €4,000, one year imprisonment or both on summary conviction.
While acknowledging the positive intention of the section, there are some challenges and possible unintended consequences to making this amendment to the Domestic Violence Act. It is also worth highlighting that these are challenges that have arisen on previous occasions, in particular when the Act was put in place. This is not the first time this issue has been considered.
As I mentioned, section 33 covers a breach of multiple different types of domestic violence orders. These orders are very different and detailed, with finely balanced statutory provisions governing how they are granted. Making a breach of all domestic violence orders a possible serious offence means that it might become harder to successfully persuade a court to grant any of them. Respondents would be expected to contest the case in a more rigorous manner. In the interests of justice, a court might, in certain circumstances, be less inclined to grant orders.
Particular concerns relate to barring orders, emergency banning orders and protection orders, that is, those which can be granted ex parte, namely where only one applicant has to be present or heard in court and outside of the usual court sittings. Of course, the whole point of getting a domestic violence or barring order at weekends, quickly or perhaps with only a victim present is that it can be accessed as quickly as possible. By putting a higher bar in place, there is a potential that such an order might not be granted because a person who is being accused should be given the right, potentially, to defend themselves in a way they would not at the moment.
The case law of the Supreme Court has set the threshold of severity for a respondent's conduct to be considered in the making of a domestic violence order. Such a threshold would possibly be raised further if section 33 were made a serious offence. Given the potential criminal consequences of breaching an order made pursuant to that section, this could make it more difficult for victims of domestic violence to obtain these civil protection orders. While I have identified the possible issues, I want to acknowledge the positive intention of the Bill. Further examination of the Bill will be undertaken by officials.
I want to return to the brave comments of Senator Ryan, who mentioned her experiences as the daughter of someone who has been domestically abused. I will update the House and Senators on developments in implementing the family justice strategy, in particular in the context of the Family Courts Act 2024. The family justice strategy runs from 2022 to 2025. It is an ambitious programme of reform that sets out a vision for a system refocused on the needs and rights of children who are central to many family justice matters. The actions in the strategy are aimed at ensuring the family justice system works better for all of those engaged with it, in particular those who need additional support and protections, including domestic violence victims.
The Family Courts Act 2024 is a key component of our Department's family justice strategy and contains a number of provisions designed to make the family court process more user-friendly and less costly. The legislation provides for the establishment of family court divisions within the existing court structures, that is, a family High Court, a family Circuit Court and a family District Court. Judges who have specialist training or experience in dealing with family law matters will be assigned to the family courts divisions on a full-time basis.
Importantly, the Act contains a set of guiding principles for the family court system, including making the best interests of the child a primary consideration in the conduct of all family law proceedings and ensuring the safety of parties to proceedings and protecting victims and survivors of domestic violence. It is committed to in the programme for Government and it is intended to publish an implementation plan for the new family court system in early January 2026.
Nicole Ryan (Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank the Minister of State for the update and for accepting the amendment. It is important for many people who may be watching this debate and for the many families who have been through this. Some families in the House may never have spoken out about such things.
I also thank him for the update on the plan in the programme for Government because I know what it is like for a child to have to go through the courts system, including preparing to testify and do all of those things. It is one of the most harrowing experiences for children have to go through. I am delighted that there will be more supports for children, including a focus on them and how to support them through those systems. I again thank the Minister of State.
Patricia Stephenson (Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context
As we heard already, domestic violence and violence against women continues to be an epidemic across the island and that is why we need this Bill. Since 2020, 37 women have been killed in the South and 27 women have been killed in the North of the country. The vast majority of those women were killed in their own home. I also want to mark the latest tragic killing of Sarah Montgomery, who was killed in Donaghadee. She was a pregnant mother of two. I remember her today, her friends, her family and especially her two children.
It is for this reason I am proud the cross-party group is using our Private Members' time to carry this Bill forward. Domestic violence must be treated seriously within the courts. We have seen high levels of domestic violence protection orders be breached by perpetrators, placing victims, often women, in serious concern for their safety and their lives. This Bill sends a clear message that breaching a court order in the context of domestic violence is not some form of technicality. It is a breach of an order that leaves a person, again mostly women, who sought the order fearing for their safety, and for their children's lives if they are involved. When there is no real threat or deterrent, this woman shall always be looking over her shoulder. She will be afraid to look at the phone or to answer the door. This can lead to a life of going out only when it is absolutely necessary and having to be accompanied by family or friends - basically a total loss of autonomy and living in constant fear. Far too often, survivors are granted protection orders only to be retraumatised by persistent breaches, stalking or the perpetrator showing up at their homes and workplaces. These actions are not minor. They leave the victim, the survivor, in a constant state of fear. They can never switch off or relax. They cannot get a good night's sleep because they never know when they will be targeted by the perpetrator again. Those actions are part of a pattern of coercive control and need to be treated as such in law.
I welcome this Bill, which will enable prosecutors to use their discretion to bring indictable charges for breaches where appropriate, which should lead to a more robust court response in the protection of survivors. I particularly welcome the move to create an indictable offence under section 33 . It gives our justice system the tools to respond proportionally to serious, ongoing or violent breaches. Survivors deserve to know when an order is made and that it will be backed up with real, meaningful consequences. This Bill is about ensuring a piece of paper from the courts offers more than just symbolic protection. It offers real deterrence, real consequences and real safety.
We cannot solve domestic violence through changes to the justice system alone. We need a multi-track approach towards zero tolerance across our society. I heard our male colleagues speaking today about what men need to do, but that is not an individualistic thing. We need a strategy from the Department of education that comes into schools and looks at culture, media and the arts across the landscape.
Patricia Stephenson (Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context
Why does violence against women happen? It is because of the patriarchy. It is because we have had decades of decades, hundreds of years, where it has been acceptable to be violent towards women. We cannot just call on individual men, although allies are always welcome. It is great to have strong voices of men in the Seanad calling this out, of course, but we need a really strong response at primary school level whereby we model good behaviours. There are some amazing male mentorship programmes out there where men are engaging young men. These are so important for bringing on healthy, positive behaviours.
I know that is not what this Bill today is about but I want to stress that the Bill is only a contribution towards how we tackle gender-based violence, violence against women and domestic violence. We need to keep on this as a collective and I have seen so much passion from all of the contributors today. I hope that, on a cross-party basis and across the floor, we can continue to identify other strategies we can push for on a legislative basis because they are needed. I know that across all parties and none people are passionate about this issue. We need a collaboration because without that we will be talking about the same issues in 20 years' time.
Tom Clonan (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank cross-party colleagues for restoring this Bill to the Order Paper. In regard to what Senator Stephenson said, there is a fetishisation of violence against women in our public discourse. It is in popular culture, literature, film and in particular online. It is a very powerful recurring narrative and it is a construct of a patriarchal society.
Senator Stephenson spoke to some of the statistics. It struck me just before we came up here that on average one woman is murdered on this island every month. That has been consistent over the past five years. In the vast majority of cases, they are murdered by an intimate partner in their own home. As Senator Ryan said, this is something that inhabits the family. It is in every aspect of Irish life and it is systemic.
As a young army officer 30 years ago, I started a PhD in DCU. As part of that, I spoke to my colleagues, my sisters in arms, in the Defence Forces about their experiences of military service. Of the 60 women I interviewed, 59 disclosed some form of discrimination, harassment or sexual violence up to and including rape. That was 59 out of 60 women. This speaks to Senator Stephenson's point. When I reported that as part of the PhD process, there began a very aggressive and sustained campaign of reprisal against me and my family for calling out sexual violence. Is that not interesting? As a species, we can give a moral case for lying or stealing, perhaps to save one's own life, and we can even provide a moral rationale for killing in defence of one's own life or that of someone else. The one thing,as a species, however, for which there can be no moral or ethical rationale is sexual abuse and domestic abuse, particularly of somebody where there is a betrayal of trust. Yet, for calling that out, there is a sustained campaign of reprisal. There is huge pushback in our patriarchal society against the idea that this ought to be dealt with in an absolutely definitive manner.
When the Women of Honour came forward in 2021 and made fresh disclosures of sexual violence, I experienced a fresh round of reprisal. When the judge-led inquiry, the independent review group, made its report, I experienced, yet again, a further round of reprisal. One of the most perplexing and traumatising aspects of that is that some of the people engaged in the reprisal were women. That speaks to the fact that all of us, men and women, have a responsibility not to collaborate with and extend the patterns of thought and behaviour of patriarchal thought. Anybody is capable of it. That is how profound and deeply woven into our society it is. That is why I support this Bill and why I co-sponsored it with the then Senator Martin.
When a survivor of domestic violence who is targeted in this way takes that step to seek help or, under God knows what set of circumstances, to seek an emergency barring order, that is the point of an acceleration of risk where many people are murdered. Very often, femicide happens in the context of somebody seeking help outside of the relationship. That is why it is so important to increase the penalty for anybody who is in breach or in variation of those orders. I commend all of my colleagues and again commend Senator Ryan. When we speak to these matters and share our experiences and the trauma around them, it is really powerful for all of those people who cannot and do not have the opportunity to do so. It is very important. I thank the Minister of State for accepting Senator Ryan's amendment. I echo what Senator Gallagher said in that I hope we can get this legislation enacted as quickly as possible.
Laura Harmon (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank the Minister of State for his comments today and clarifications on a number of issues. I hope we can make sure this Bill is enacted. It will have a huge impact on our society and on those seeking the protections they desperately need. This is a cultural issue. The Bill will not solve it. As my colleague Senator Stephenson said, it is a wider issue that is ingrained in our culture. It is part of the patriarchy. Domestic violence and abuse does not just happen within heterosexual relationships. It affects the LGBTQ community as well. Of course, it affects men and women, but we know from the statistics it predominantly affects women.
Violence and abuse can be very varied. It can be verbal, physical, sexual, emotional, coercive or financial control. Sometimes the abuse can be hidden from people and the perpetrators can be very calculated. I urge everyone to support the Bill. We know that 65,000 contacts were made to the Garda last year, and many people still struggle to get the protections they need. In County Cork alone, more than 2,300 people applied for protection orders, yet only half of these were granted. The arrest rate for domestic abuse crimes was just 21% in west Cork, which is the lowest in the country. Being from Cork, I was struck by those figures. The Bill marks an important step in moving away from a one-size-fits-all approach. It will give greater discretion to the courts and prosecutors to respond proportionately to the complex realities of abuse and coercive control. Moreover, the next section will ensure the courts can have power to refuse bail and to take into account former offences. It is worth noting from the recent Women's Aid report that 44% of those who reported issues relating to this were not satisfied with the response they got from An Garda Síochána. The Bill also makes provisions for training and awareness-raising for gardaí, which is absolutely vital.
I want to read into the record some of the statistics from Women's Aid. It is great to have its CEO, Sarah Benson, in the Gallery. We know 35% of women in Ireland, or one in three, will suffer some form of physical, psychological or sexual abuse from an intimate partner. That is a shocking statistic. These are our friends and often our family members or our colleagues. We will all know somebody within that statistic. We must all know somebody who has suffered domestic violence. Women's Aid frontline services in 2024 were contacted 32,144 times. This was a 12% increase on 2023. It is great that we have these vital services providing supports. We need to ensure there is always adequate funding for these vital services, but the fact the figures are going up and up shows the worrying trend and the need for this legislation and these supports within our society. The helpline received 24,396 contacts last year, up 17% on 2023. Another statistic that struck me was that 33% of this abuse was conducted by ex-partners. Often, when a relationship has ended, the abuse and the horrors continue for those affected. Our housing strategy does not include an acknowledgment of domestic violence and how the housing crisis in this country is contributing to that. Due to the housing crisis many people are being forced to stay in living situations they are trying to escape from. It is important that be factored into the wider stream of things. I thank my colleagues in the cross-party group Senator Stephenson and Senator Cosgrove, and Senator Malcolm Noonan in particular because it was he who suggested we should reintroduce this Bill. I also thank the original signatories of the Bill, and in particular Senator Tom Conan, for initiating it in the first instance. Finally, I thank Senator Nicole Ryan for her amendment, which is going to strengthen this legislation hugely.
Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank Senator Harmon. I welcome the Crumlin-Drimnagh group to the Gallery. I also see John Bourke, chairman of WALK, which is a fantastic disability organisation. He is accompanied by Deputy Ardagh.
This also gives me the opportunity to thank Sarah Benson, the chief executive of Women's Aid, for being here for all the contributions today on the Bill and the very important amendment. It is great the Government has accepted it. Most speakers have used Women's Aid statistics in the context of their local area. I thank Sarah Benson and all her colleagues for their work within Women's Aid.
Nessa Cosgrove (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context
The Minister of State is very welcome and I thank him for coming in. I also welcome Sarah Benson. It is fantastic that she is here. I thank the original signatories of the Bill, Senator Clonan and the former Senator Martin, and Senator Noonan for introducing it again and allowing us to be part of it.
I have just come back from the Irish Congress of Trade Unions biannual conference. The general secretary and the president of the ICTU raised what has become an epidemic of violence against women and girls. It is becoming more prevalent in all of our lives. We have spoken today about the number of people and women who have been killed. The underlying theme from today and from the conference over the last two days is that collectively as a society we know about this, so it is our responsibility to address it, whether through the State and legislation or through our own actions, something that a lot of Senators have spoken about.
I am going to speak about the wider context. We have seen the increase in the reporting of domestic violence and abuse and gender-based violence. These reports sometimes come from women who have survived years and even decades of abuse and other people who are still enduring abuse. Over 32,000 contacts were made to Women's Aid during 2024. That is 32,000 instances of women looking for help. The purpose of the Bill is to give strength and teeth to the existing legislation but also to ensure we look at continuous help by making it part of the housing strategy and looking at women's refuges, supports for children and family supports. This is such a welcome Bill and I hope it is enacted and not delayed, but there needs to be is a wider conversation. The Bill is just one part of a response.
Thankfully, women and children are no longer expected to tolerate a life of violence or to live in an abusive relationship, but as legislators we need to enact this and as a State we need to respond accordingly. In January 2023, I publicly highlighted the concerns in my own area that nine counties, including Sligo and Leitrim, had no women's refuge. Refuge is the last resort. Senator Clonan spoke about this. The help needs to be given when people are initially looking for help. Senator Gallagher spoke about women having to leave the home.That needs to be looked at. When people are looking for refuge spaces, things have gone as far as they can possibly go. However, we need to still provide those spaces. I know nine counties still do not have a shelter in July 2025. Sligo and Leitrim do not. From speaking to organisations locally, I know there have been great strides in how the Government is approaching the planning of these services. I acknowledge this.
Cuan is working well to ensure that all partner services are involved in decision-making. The Department of housing, the domestic violence advocacy service, DVAS, and local authorities have been working hand in hand. In Sligo, the intention is that DVAS will be a lead partner in operating the facility designed to accommodate eight families. That is where the issue lies. We know a number of sites have been identified and some were agreed on would have provided suitable service and sites, but some of those sites did not become available. The question of a site for Sligo will be revisited again at the end of July. This is where I want to ensure local authorities are working in partnership with Departments to ensure this becomes a matter of urgency and a part of housing planning within the planning department and the Department of housing to ensure spaces are available for women and children when they need it.
I commend the women and children who have been forced to leave their homes. I also commend Senator Malcolm Noonan on bringing this Bill forward and Senator Ryan for including children in it because it is essential that we are acting responsibly and quickly to ensure this epidemic does not escalate further out of control.
Niall Collins (Limerick County, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
I thank the Senators for their contributions again. I refer to the recent Women's Aid report and acknowledge that it makes for very distressing reading. The data is very stark. The work being done by Women's Aid in this space helps victims of domestic violence to speak up and ensure they feel supported when they do so. The volume speaks to both the scale and the challenge, but also to a growing willingness to recognise, name and call out abuse and a growing willingness for victims and survivors to come forward and engage, including with our justice system, which is important.
Over the last decade, Ireland has made significant strides in addressing the challenge of domestic violence through legislative reform, national awareness campaigns and the expansion of support services. A more recent focus has included adopting a survivor-centred evidence-based approach, including collaboration between the Government and non-governmental organisations to tackle the root causes, to promote awareness, to provide support to victims and ultimately ensure we hold perpetrators to account. This work is being guided by a comprehensive framework under the third national strategy to combat domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, which emphasises prevention, protection, prosecution and policy co-ordination.
In the programme for Government, our Government reaffirms our stated ambition to establish a zero-tolerance approach to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, which we recognise as vital for safeguarding individuals and promoting a safer society. This work is identified as continuing to be a major priority for the Government. A range of specific commitments were made to help deliver the ambition, including in respect of fully implementing the third national strategy, developing a new plan for 2026-2030, increasing refuge spaces, updating the school curriculum, rolling out training, making the criminal justice system more victim-centred and reviewing the maximum sentences for relevant offences.
Since his appointment, my colleague, the Minister, Deputy O'Callaghan, has made it clear that combating and eradicating domestic, sexual and gender-based violence will be one of his core principles in the Department of justice. The two key areas the Minister has progressed since taking office include the drafting of legislation to remove the guardianship rights of a person convicted of killing their intimate partner and working to develop a scheme to ensure any person in an intimate relationship can be informed if their partner has a history of domestic violence.
I also want to respond to the work of our Department and Cuan in providing more refuge spaces. One of the overarching goals of the zero-tolerance strategy to address domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is to ensure that everyone who needs a refuge space will get one. In June 2022, there were 141 refuge units throughout the country. The zero-tolerance strategy includes a commitment to the doubling of this number by the end of 2026. There were 147 refuge units at the end of 2023, with 12 new units delivered in 2024, including the state-of-the-art refuge in Wexford. There are currently 159 units. In this year, another 54 units are set to be under construction or due for refurbishment this year. This will bring the total units, including those under construction, to 213 by the end of this year.
In addition to the development of refuge spaces, Cuan is committed to delivering additional safe homes which provide appropriate accommodation in certain circumstances. In terms of timing, Cuan is currently concluding a review of domestic violence accommodation delivery and development, working closely with our Department and the Department of housing to look at what measures need to be accelerated to meet the target by the end of the strategy. While it is complex business, Cuan is actively seeking ways to streamline processes and speed up delivery of domestic violence accommodation.
Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
When is it proposed to take the next Stage?
Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context
When is it proposed to sit again?