Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I call on Senator Rabbitte to move the motion, which will be seconded by Senator Comyn. They are going to share time. Is that agreed? Agreed.

Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I move:

That Seanad Éireann: recognises that: - domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is a scourge on our society;

- we must work collectively to tackle domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in our communities, workplaces, political system, and in wider society;

- under Zero Tolerance: the Third National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender Based Violence (Zero Tolerance strategy), there has been real, tangible progress across funding, legislation, prevention and victim support; agrees that: - there is a need for at least 280 refuge spaces across the country by the end of this year;

- any attempt by accommodation providers to exploit their position and prey on vulnerable individuals through so-called 'sex for rent arrangements' is completely unacceptable;

- robust protections must apply to the handling of victims’ counselling notes in the context of criminal trials;

- the killing of the guardian of a child raises clear concerns for the safety and welfare of that child;

- there is a need for greater transparency around serious sexual and violent offences;

- pornography is now highly accessible online;

- violent pornography is presenting a repulsive and distorted image of the ways boys and young men should behave in relationships; notes that: - the Zero Tolerance strategy includes a commitment to double the number of refuge spaces in the country by the end of 2026;

- currently in sexual assault trials, counselling notes are routinely being disclosed, causing distress and re-victimisation for the complainant;

- the Programme for Government commits to: criminalising those who seek sex in exchange for rent;

- examining proposals to remove guardianship rights from those convicted of killing their partners or a parent of their child;

- working with An Garda Síochána to ensure a person in an intimate relationship can be informed of a serious risk to them where a new partner has a history of domestic violence;

- non-fatal strangulation is now a dominant theme in online pornography;

- An Garda Síochána has cited non-fatal strangulation as a leading indicator of escalating violence in a relationship and a significant risk factor for homicide in women; acknowledges that: - the Government is committed to the full implementation of the Zero Tolerance strategy and to the actions in its final implementation plan;

- this action is supported by unprecedented funding of almost €80 million under Budget 2026;

- the Government is accelerating the delivery of safe accommodation;

- by the end of 2026, it is envisaged 94 safe homes and 193 refuge units will be completed, bringing total safe accommodation to 287, with 50 further refuge units under construction;

- comprehensive legislative reform is in train in areas including:

- criminalisation of seeking sex for rent;

- disclosure of counselling notes in sexual assault trials;

- removing guardianship rights of those convicted of killing partners;

- the establishment of a domestic violence register of judgments;

- the Government has committed to prioritising the online safety and protection of children during the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU; calls for: - the full implementation of the Zero Tolerance strategy;

- every county in Ireland to have at least one refuge within the lifetime of the Government;

- every county to have a minimum of two safe homes within the lifetime of the Government;

- the swift passage of the Criminal Law and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2025 through the Houses of the Oireachtas to criminalise those who seek sex for rent and to facilitate the reform of laws around disclosure of counselling notes in sexual offences trials;

- the swift passage of the Guardianship of Infants (Amendment) Bill 2026, known as Valerie’s Law, through the Houses of the Oireachtas;

- the swift passage of Criminal Justice (Domestic Violence Register) Bill 2026, known as Jennie’s Law, through the Houses of the Oireachtas;

- the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration to work with An Garda Síochána to establish a domestic violence register of judgments and related disclosure scheme;

- the Government to use the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU to tackle the impact of violent pornography. The Minister is very welcome. He is going to be a frequent visitor to the House this week.

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I am delighted to be here.

Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. I am grateful for the opportunity to speak on the motion. I have just come from the justice committee where we also discussed domestic violence, which is fantastic. I thank the Minister and the Department for the work they have put in to ensure that this conversation is front and centre at all times. Unfortunately, it shows the sad state of where we are at but it is important that we have open and transparent conversations on it.

The motion recognises that domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is a scourge on our society and that we must work collectively to tackle it in our communities, workplaces, political system and in wider society. Under Zero Tolerance: Third National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender Based Violence there has been real, tangible progress across funding, legislation, prevention and victim support. We see that with the work Cuan and Women's Aid are doing. Only last week my good colleague Senator Comyn ensured the audiovisual room was fully packed for a conversation in that regard and on the next steps. I have no doubt she will address all of that. There is a need for at least another 280 refuge spaces across the country by the end of this year. The county council looks to the refuge in Galway city to provide refuge space for those who need it in Galway county. We do not have an independent allocation of refuge spaces within the county, which is unfortunate. As the Minister knows, that is not an isolated case.

Any attempt by accommodation providers to exploit their position and prey on vulnerable individuals through a so-called sex-for-rent arrangement is completely unacceptable. In recent months, the Minister was present when legislation and motions in that regard were brought forward. I welcome the work he has done on Valerie's Law. That is very commendable and was much-needed. Going forward we need to work with local authorities to ensure there are wraparound supports and that when a person makes the decision to leave the family home, the next steps are in place. I also welcome the work done by the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Calleary, on travel, and the work on rent supplement, but so much more is required for women to leave the family home. We must ensure that they stay in the community, that children can continue to access education and that women can continue to work in a dignified and supported mechanism. We must remove the stigma and ensure employers understand and support such women.

It is unfortunate that when women take those next steps, they are hit with barriers they should not encounter, in particular if they own or share a local authority property where both names are concerned. If a woman leaves the family home, she does not have the right to return to it and she must seek accommodation, perhaps in another local authority. In many such cases, in all fairness, women do not feel they are supported. There is a lot of work still to be done at grassroots level within organisations. A bottom-up approach is needed. A lot of this is outside the remit of the Department of justice. When we talk about wraparound supports, we are talking about the justice system supporting women and the Department of Education and Youth supporting children and ensuring that they can attend school, but the most important thing is for there to be a safe roof over a person's head. That would give people confidence to flee a situation.

The zero-tolerance strategy is very important. It includes a commitment to double the number of refuge spaces in the country by the end of 2026. I look forward to the Minister outlining how we are addressing that and when we are going to get to a stage where every county in this country has a provision for people who choose to take the first step of removing themselves from the family home. The programme for Government commits to criminalising those who seek sex in exchange for rent. Senator Comyn will go into the sex trafficking that is also a blight and how people are exploited by this industry. Last week in the audiovisual room, we heard about nail bars and hair salons and what is going on under the radar in this country that people might not be aware of at all. It is shocking.

I want to finally focus on ladies leaving a situation, who have children with additional needs, including those who are non-verbal. We need to improve our understanding and how the courts system and health system engage and communicate with a child who is non-verbal. Could the Minister comment on how the judicial system engages with parents who have vulnerable children or young adults who need support? Does it understand that not all communication is verbal and that we must have intermediaries to support children who are non-verbal? Sometimes, we unfortunately forget about children who are non-verbal or children with additional needs going through the courts system. We are trying to support the victims - the mothers – but there are other victims, namely, the children who also carry the trauma for years. How do we ensure that children who are non-verbal in particular recover but also have their voices heard? It is an unusual situation, but it is one that we need to address.

I will hand over to Senator Comyn.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Before I bring in Senator Comyn, I welcome the Viala Lacoste French school, guests of our education officer, Conor Reale. They are very welcome. I hope they enjoy their visit to the Oireachtas today.

Alison Comyn (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I second the motion. I thank the Minister for coming to the House. The conversation we are having is incredibly vital. I welcome the motion and commend Senators O'Loughlin, Rabbitte, and other colleagues on bringing it forward. It is to our shame that we are still talking about this in 2026 and that we still have to legislate, strategise and campaign to protect women and children from this violence, coercion, exploitation and abuse in their own homes, relationships, online and right across society in general.Domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is not just a private or family matter. I spent years as a journalist and there were times when I went to a Garda station only to be told I would not be interested in a particular incident because it was just a domestic dispute. Domestic abuse should not be seen as something that happens behind closed doors and as lesser than any other kind of assault.

The language around it has changed over the years, about which I am glad. The support received from An Garda Síochána, sexual abuse units and Cuan is incredible. We know better now and we must be able to tackle this type of violence at source. That is why I welcome the zero-tolerance strategy and the progress that has been made under it. We should acknowledge that process. As my colleague Senator Rabbitte mentioned, there has been increased funding, legislative reform and a stronger focus on prevention, victim support and safe accommodation. The funding of almost €80 million under budget 2026 is hugely significant.

However, every one of us in this House knows the need is still greater than the provision. We know refuges are under huge pressure, women are still being turned away with their children and children are spending too long in emergency accommodation because there is nowhere else for their mothers to go. We know the moment of leaving can be one of the most dangerous times for a woman experiencing abuse. Refuge spaces are absolutely vital but refuge is not the end of the story. Refuge is a place of emergency safety. It is not intended to be a long-term home. It is not the place for woman and their children to stay and seek to rebuild their lives. The question we must ask is really simple: what happens next and where do these women go after they have had the support of refuge? That is the gap I am hoping we can address through this motion and other measures.

As my colleague mentioned, in Leinster House last Wednesday, I hosted a presentation on proposals for move-on accommodation for women and children leaving domestic support. The proposals were brought forward by Ms Sarah Slazenger, who is managing director of Powerscourt Estate. In attendance were vital stakeholders, including representatives of women's refuges in Bray, Drogheda and Dundalk, Soroptimists Ireland groups, women's sheds, the Irish Countrywomen's Association and a delegation of female ambassadors from right across Europe and the globe. The might of their support is incredible. It was a powerful gathering but, more importantly, we heard about some very practical solutions. The proposal is really simple. Local authorities should be supported to work with property owners to identify vacant, derelict or underused buildings, particularly in town centres, and bring them back into use as supported move-on accommodation for women and children leaving refuge services. They could include former retail businesses, preferably with over-the-shop accommodation, suitable publicly owned properties, including State and HSE buildings, and properties whose owners are willing to work with the State and local authorities to deliver something of real social and community value.

The model is not complicated. A local authority could enter into a long-term lease with a property owner and the building could be refurbished to meet housing, fire safety, child safety and security standards. These are women who are once again becoming fully fledged members of their community. There is no need for high security. This would not be a refuge situation; it is a move-on proposal. The accommodation could be allocated through domestic violence and housing support services to women and children who are ready to move on from refuge but who still need stability and support. It is not intended to replace permanent housing or refuges. Rather, it would fill the gap between the two, which is so evident at the moment, whereby women are falling between two or three stools.

One of the points that struck me most forcefully at the presentation is that women leaving refuge may not always appear in the homelessness figures in the way we might expect. They do not necessarily have priority on housing lists. If they need to move to a local authority in another jurisdiction, they may have to start from scratch. We must ensure these women are not returning to a family home in which, sadly, a perpetrator remains. They could have children in school, medical supports in place and family supports nearby, but they may be forced to move away from all that because there is no safe accommodation locally. That is not right. Women who have done everything they should do and have been brave enough to leave their situation should not be told they are now on their own. Children who have escaped violence and whom we say we want to help rehabilitate must not find themselves taken away from their school, their friends, their community and their stability.

This is why move-on accommodation must become a central part of our overall response. It is why local authorities must be at the heart of that response. They know their towns and its vacant buildings. They know people in the community, where the services are and what buildings could be brought back into use really quickly. However, they cannot be expected to do that alone. As my colleague said, this requires a clear national policy framework. There must be funding, there must be cross-party and cross-department collaboration, including between the Departments of housing and justice, and collaboration with Cuan, Tusla, the HSE, local authorities and, of course, the front-line domestic services that see these issues every day of the week.

There must be a clear pathway for property owners with a vacant or underused building that could be brought back into use to work with their local authority to provide safe supported accommodation for some of the most vulnerable women and children in our society. For those property owners, such arrangements could offer secure long-term rental income and a way to bring vacant buildings back into productive use. We know how important that is for our town centres, in attracting commercial entities and in making the streets safer for everybody. For women and children leaving refuge, it can mean something far more important. It can mean safety, stability and, instead of having to go back, being able to keep moving forward.

The motion also proposes the criminalisation of sex-for-rent practices, which is extremely important. Anyone who seeks to exploit a person's housing vulnerability in exchange for sex is engaging in predatory behaviour. It is coercive, it is abusive and it is simply not acceptable. It must be criminalised.

The motion's support for the reform of how counselling notes are handled in sexual assault trials is also essential. Victims should not be retraumatised by the fear that deeply private therapeutic notes will be routinely disclosed in court.

There is so much to welcome in the motion, including the focus on Valerie's law and the proposal to remove guardianship rights from those convicted of killing a partner or the fellow parent of their children. The welfare and safety of the child must be paramount. I also welcome Senator Rabbitte's comments regarding the availability of transportation during the vital period when women need to escape. That could be an extra expense that is taken away.

I must mention online pornography and the impact it is having on boys and young men. We cannot ignore that violent pornography is now easily accessible to children. In handing them phones for their first Holy Communion and their Confirmation, we are, unfortunately, handing them the keys to accessing horrendous online abuse. We cannot ignore the normalisation of strangulation, degradation and violence in what many young people are seeing online. Non-fatal strangulation is a major red flag for abusive relationships. We had a presentation in Leinster House not so long ago during which I was shocked to hear that for some girls as young as 12, 13 and 14, their first ever engagement with a boy their own age may include an experience of strangulation. That is not acceptable. We need to be able to legislate for what our children are seeing online.

This motion is wide-ranging because the problem is wide-ranging. Domestic, sexual and gender-based violence does not fit neatly within the remit of one Department. It touches on justice, housing, health, education, children, local government and online safety. We must all work together to address it. I welcome the motion and I support the swift passage of the legislation it references. I urge everyone to place the provision of move-on accommodation at the top of our agenda.

Aubrey McCarthy (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for being here for this very important debate. As a young child growing up in County Kildare, there was domestic violence in my own house. My mother was a wonderful lady and a figurehead for us all to look up to. She had to go through the courts. There was very little protection at that time. There were no refuges and nowhere to go. My mother had to go through court proceedings, the High Court and all of that. It was a very dark time of my life. I have no doubt it impacted on me and influenced my setting up Tiglin, whereby we help women who are marginalised and have set up various safe places for women.

Now, at 54 years of age, I consider, as my colleague Senator Comyn noted, that we are dealing, in 2026, with something that should no longer be happening and which should be a done deal. Three years ago, our nation was shaken to its core by the brutal murder of Ashling Murphy. That young woman, who was in college with my niece, was full of promise and was a wonderful musician. She was taken from her community and her family. Her death was a moment that stopped us all in our tracks and we all hoped it would be a turning point. I believed it was such at the time in that we seemed finally to confront male violence and condemn it for what it is. However, as Women's Aid recently noted, women in Ireland are no safer today than they were on the day Ashling died.A statement like that gives me the horrors. Since 1996, 275 women have been violently killed in the Republic. Two thirds of them were killed in their own homes and more than half were killed by a partner or former partner. They are not just random numbers; they were people with lives and families. My own family could have been a statistic in this regard. An Garda Síochána has published statistics showing it dealt with 65,000 incidents of domestic abuse in 2024. That is 1,250 every single week. This shows the huge scale of domestic abuse. It seems that is what we are facing at this moment.

The reason I support this motion is that it recognises that domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is an absolute scourge in our society and is still very prevalent. I witnessed it as a child but it is still very prevalent now. That just cannot be. This cannot just be seen as a men's issue. It is a cultural and political issue and it demands a whole-of-society response.

I welcome the progress made under the zero-tolerance strategy, including the increased funding, the legislative reforms and the expansion of refuge places. However, there has not been enough. We need more places and victim supports. The steps forward show progress but they are just not enough at this stage. Safety is what women and children in this country deserve.

We know that at least 280 refuge spaces are promised by the end of this year. That is what is needed, and I hope they are delivered. I also hope every county in Ireland will have at least two safe homes for women who need access to them. We need to accelerate the delivery of the 94 safe homes and the 193 refuge units already planned, as well as the additional 50 units under construction, and ensure they are completed without delay. These refuges are not luxuries; they are lifelines.

We also need to confront a deeply disturbing reality my colleague mentioned. Some accommodation providers are exploiting vulnerable people through so-called sex-for-rent arrangements. Such predatory behaviour is coercion and abuse and it absolutely has to be criminalised. I am in total in agreement with my colleague on this. I support the swift passage of the criminal law and civil law legislation to ensure this practice is criminalised with the full force of the law.

Another area in which reform is urgently needed is the handling of counselling notes in sexual assault trials. This is a major issue. At present, the notes are routinely disclosed, which causes the re-traumatisation of victims. It discourages many victims from seeking the help they need, and that is definitely not justice and it is not acceptable. It is essential that this issue be addressed.

I also want to refer to the accessibility online of violent pornography, which presents a distorted view to younger people. That absolutely has to be confronted. That is why initiatives such as the Greystones initiative It Takes a Village, which is fantastic, need to be supported and funded.

I commend my Fianna Fáil colleagues on the motion. It acknowledges that, while progress has been made, the work is far from finished. It is about ensuring the zero-tolerance strategy is fully implemented, fully funded and fully delivered. It is also about ensuring every woman and child in this country can live free from fear. We owe this to the memory of the 275 women, including Aisling Murphy, whose lives have been taken since 1996, to the 32,000 women who contacted Women's Aid last year and to every woman and girl growing up in Ireland today. By working together, we can make zero tolerance a reality.

Garret Kelleher (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire as ucht teacht isteach agus páirt a ghlacadh sa díospóireacht anseo tráthnóna inniu.

Is é an pointe is tábhachtaí gur féidir liomsa a dhéanamh anseo mar gheall ar reachtaíocht i dTithe an Oireachtais a bhaineann le foréigean teaghlaigh, gnéasach agus inscnebhunaithe ná go gcaithfidh tacaíocht d'íospartaigh a bheith i gcroílár gach a ndéanaimid. Caithfimid gach iarracht gur féidir linn a dhéanamh chun a chinntiú go bhfuil ár gcóras ceartais choiriúil níos atruachaí agus go bhfuil níos mó tacaíochta á cur ar fáil dóibh siúd a d'fhulaing ó chiontóirí na coiriúlachta baile, gnéasaí agus inscnebhunaithe.

The most important point I can make in relation to legislation on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is that support for victims must be at the heart of everything we do. We must ensure that we have a more victim-centred criminal justice system that recognises that victims' suffering continues long after an offence has been committed and long after an offender has been sentenced. It must also recognise the stress, anxiety and re-traumatisation experienced by victims when the perpetrators of crimes against them are released from prison. While the horrors of these crimes can never be fully erased, we need to continuously work to improve our laws so as to provide as much support and solace as we can to survivors of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.

By developing a more compassionate and victim-centred criminal justice system, we can work towards achieving two outcomes: first, supporting and protecting victims who have found the courage to report the horrendous crimes to which they have been subjected; and second, giving survivors who have not yet managed to bring themselves to report a domestic, sexual or gender-based crime committed against them the confidence to do so, knowing that they can expect a more compassionate, supportive and fairer criminal justice system.

As alluded to by Senators Rabbitte and Comyn, the importance of working with organisations such as Cuan, Women's Aid and Rape Crisis Ireland, and directly with victims and survivors, cannot be overstated. This afternoon, representatives of Rape Crisis Ireland and Women's Aid appeared before the Joint Committee on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration. They stressed the importance of providing protections to victims and that new legislative provisions should be applied retrospectively, where possible, to victims of historical offences. The Minister might comment on this in his reply. The representatives also said the supports afforded by the criminal justice system must be lifelong, recognising the ongoing trauma experienced by victims.

Like Senator McCarthy in his comments, I want to touch on the progress made on the use of counselling notes and give due credit to the Minister in this regard. I am very happy to see the legislative progress made recently in restricting the use of counselling notes in criminal trials. I thank the Minister for his work in this area.

As Senators Rabbitte, Gallagher, Ruane and McDowell will be aware, the joint committee recently heard from a survivor of rape. In a powerful testimony, she informed us that although the counselling she had received had saved her life, she would not have gone to counselling at all if she had known her counselling notes would be used against her in the subsequent criminal trial. That, in itself, says an awful lot. I very much welcome how open the Minister was in ensuring the criminal justice system would become much more compassionate when it comes to something as sensitive as counselling notes.

Like others, I want to make reference to sex for rent. I thank our colleague Senator Laura Harmon, in particular, for the great work she has done in highlighting this practice, advocating for the rights of many vulnerable people seeking accommodation throughout the country and working directly with the Minister to ensure seeking sex in lieu of rent is criminalised.

I welcome the Bill's reference to the examination of proposals to remove guardianship rights from those convicted of killing their partner or the parent of their child. This has been discussed by the joint committee.Arís, ar son Fhine Gael, gabhaim buíochas le Fianna Fáil as ucht an díospóireacht seo a chur os ár gcomhair. Táim thar a bheith sásta mo chuid tacaíochta a thabhairt don rún.

Pauline Tully (Sinn Fein)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

This issue has been discussed in the Chamber, the Dáil Chamber, the audiovisual room, the justice committee and many other committees. It is good that it is being discussed and different things are being highlighted. However, there is a deep frustration among many organisations like Safe Ireland and Women's Aid that we are still discussing this. There have been improvements - Acts introduced that have helped things and more refuge places - but there is still a lot more to be done.

The fact that this is still continuing, not just in this country, is shocking. In Ireland, 282 women have died violently since 1996. In the North, there is a concerning figure of 30 since 2020. It has one of the worst femicide rates in the world. We need to approach this issue on an all-Ireland basis. We need shared refuge spaces. For example, I come from County Cavan, where there is no refuge. There are no refuges in Monaghan, Leitrim, Roscommon or Longford. There are plans, which are moving rapidly, for one in Monaghan. It will be some years before that is in situ and it will take even longer for one in Cavan to be provided. I welcome the fact that some safe houses will open in those counties very soon. If there are refuge spaces in Fermanagh or Armagh, there should be co-operation across the Border to assist families who seek help. There is good co-operation between Women's Aid North and South.

Violent perpetrators can skip across the Border to evade arrest when it comes to a violent episode against a partner or former partner, yet are close enough to the person to still be a threat to them. That is something people fear on a regular basis.

Some of the Acts that have been passed recently, such as Coco's Law and the non-fatal strangulation Act, are very welcome. Other legislation is moving through the legislative process, such as Valerie's law and Jennie's law, the domestic abuse register. Things seem very slow and we have to get the legislation right, but the sooner such laws can be enacted, the better.

The guardianship of infants (amendment) Bill, or Valerie's law, refers to a parent being killed by another parent and the guardianship of children. There is also an issue when violence is perpetrated against one parent by another which does not lead to death, and children are caught in the middle. A parent who may be in prison, or who has left prison, still has guardianship rights to children. I am concerned about that. I have met women whose marriages have broken down, often as a result of violence. A prison sentence may not be involved. The children are under a court order whereby a father often has visitation rights, but the children do not want to go and are terrified and crying. What is a mother supposed to do? Is she supposed to force a little child who is crying because they do not want to go to spend time with their father? If she did not, she would be the one in violation of a court order. The courts and Tusla need to be better about listening to the voices of children. It is not about the parent's right to see their child; rather, it is about what is right for the child and whether a child has access to one or both parents. Many marriages break down, the relationship is good and children can see both parents, but where that is not the case we need to take into consideration how the children feel.

The practice regarding victims counselling notes is absurd and outright wrong. When the justice committee carried out pre-legislative scrutiny of the Criminal Law and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill recently, there was cross-party support for a complete and unconditional ban on the use of counselling records in sexual offence trials. I hope that will be the case. Victims and survivors say that the practice is deeply traumatising, causes severe psychological harm and heightens suicide risk. I plead with the Minister to ban the use of notes in any such cases.

The Istanbul Convention recommends around 500 refuge spaces according to our population. It is welcome that there will be 280 spaces by the end of this year, but that is just over half of what we require. We need many more spaces than are currently being provided.

There is deep-rooted misogyny in certain organisations in our State. Unfortunately, these are the organisations that deal with victims and survivors of domestic abuse and violence, namely, our judicial system and the Garda. Any person reporting violence by a partner against them wants to be assured that they are talking to a garda who understands them and is sympathetic and not one who has a barring order against him or her for the same offence. We know there are many gardaí with barring orders, but we do not know how many because it is up to them to self-disclose. If that is the case, most will not do so. That needs to be changed. We need to make sure that a garda who has a barring order for domestic violence is not in a position to deal with people reporting such cases.

In the case of the Judiciary, I know of certain women who will not go to court when a certain judge is sitting because they know they will not get a barring, safety or protection order. They wait for another day and put themselves in danger because they consider it to be a waste of time and pointless. We need an attitudinal change and a lot more education, especially among our young men. We need men to call out this abuse in a much more vocal manner.

Nessa Cosgrove (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to discuss this motion and commend Fianna Fáil Senators on bringing it forward. I am sharing time.

Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Is that agreed? Agreed.

Nessa Cosgrove (Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

That we are still discussing this issue and having a motion on it is depressing. That 32,144 women contacted Women's Aid last year is horrendous. I welcome that the motion recognises that violence is a scourge on society and that, collectively, we have to tackle it. It is good to see words like that in the motion.

I also recognise the steps that have been taken, such as the progression of the sex for rent legislation and the introduction last month of the violence travel supplement. I commend Senator Patricia Stephenson on all the work she has done on that and Senator Harmon on the work she has done on sex for rent legislation. It shows that we can make an impact. I commend the Government on addressing these issues.

The recognition in the motion that there needs to be at least 280 refuge spaces by the end of the year is very welcome, but it is not enough. It is only fair that there should be a refuge space in each county. This is the third time since I was elected that I am raising the fact that we do not have refuge spaces in Sligo. The Domestic Violence Advocacy Service, DVAS, is working alongside Sligo County Council and Cuan to do everything it can to try to bring this forward, but it is taking too long. I raised this issue on International Women's Day last November and again in October when we discussed the free travel Bill. It is my duty to again raise this issue with the Minister. This has been going on for too long and we do not understand why. I have worked with DVAS and we do not understand why there is a delay. Are resources needed from local authorities? I thought at this stage things would have progressed further but they have not. My former colleagues in Sligo County Council wrote to the Department of justice in January to ask for an update and we still have not received one. I thank the Minister for giving me the opportunity to again raise this matter.

I work with many young women in my constituency who have to leave their homes. I know the consequences for them of having to take a child with them and be judged for going into homelessness because they have to leave a violent situation. As Senator Tully has said, the Garda needs to be resourced. The children and victims of domestic abuse have to be the number one priority. There is still a fear among victims that in coming forward they will be judged and have to face the perpetrator in court, and will be judged for having to leave a situation and go into homelessness. If they are staying with a family friend, even when on the housing list, they should be recognised as being homeless but in a safe environment. I commend the Fianna Fáil Senators on bringing this motion forward.

Patricia Stephenson (Social Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister and the Fianna Fáil Senators for giving us the opportunity to have this important discussion. It is urgent and we need that collective and cross-departmental approach. I know Cuan sits under the Minister but this has many different facets. I also note the positive engagement of the Minister, Deputy Calleary, with me on the free travel scheme. I recognise the importance of working across the floor on that. It also highlights that holistic piece in that it does not just sit under justice but many other areas.

We still see record levels of domestic violence and that is trending upwards, concerningly. The Government's commitment to the delivery of safe accommodation is welcome. However, even the target of doubling refuge spaces by the end of this year sees us falling substantially short of the Istanbul Convention. What we increasingly hear from front-line organisations in the sector is that while more refuge space is necessary, particularly in places where there is no refuge, it is not the only answer. Refuge is a temporary emergency measure. What survivors desperately need are long-term solutions. We have a chronic shortage of safe, affordable and long-term housing options, which limits survivors' pathways out of refuge. It constrains the already stretched capacity of many of our refuges. The limited housing options see survivors facing difficult questions about rebuilding their lives. The lack of affordable private rental accommodation compounds that challenge. You might get the housing assistance payment, HAP, but we know people struggle to get properties covered by HAP. The only other pathway is social housing, but we know the social housing lists are incredibly long. We need to think about how we can integrate the needs and experiences of survivors into housing policy. That is not within the Minister's remit but the challenge with a response to domestic violence is that it is cross-departmental.

I would also like us to consider what provisions we can make to remove perpetrators from the home. This discussion of housing and refuge comes from the challenge that survivors - victims and their children - are often the ones who leave the home while the perpetrator stays there. I know there will be legal questions about that in terms of court cases and being innocent before being proved guilty, but we need to explore that area, particularly with the housing crisis we are facing.

I note the issue of the disclosure of counselling notes. It is an archaic and misogynistic practice and is preventing people from seeking justice. It is preventing a culture of proper accountability for survivors. The idea of people's deeply personal counselling notes being shared and used against them is horrifying. None of us would want to be in that position.

When we talk about gender-based and domestic violence, we often talk about protection and response but not about prevention. A critical element of that is how we stamp out misogynistic culture in our society. It goes back to online safety and creating an online space that is positive and productive. We can take young people offline altogether, but at the age of 16 they will go back online and the space will still be incredibly toxic. We need to explore how to create a safe online space.

Eileen Flynn (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I welcome this motion and thank the Fianna Fáil Senators for bringing it forward. I notice there are few men in the Chamber. We need men to be part of the discussion of this issue. I want to highlight that. The zero-tolerance strategy committed to delivering at least 280 refuge spaces by 2026. The Council of Europe states that a country of Ireland's size needs at least 500 units. We are nowhere near that target. Women turned away from refuges do not disappear. They go back to their abuser, face homelessness and in many cases go back to a more aggressive situation. I welcome this motion and I highlight that Coco's Law, which came into force in 2021, was a step in the right direction. There has been an increase in cases since 2024. In 2025, it was up by 75 cases and I welcome that. It is brilliant. Again, it is only a step. As Senator Comyn said, it is ridiculous that in 2026 we are still having this discussion about safe spaces for women and children.

I am sure the Minister is aware of this, but I will bring his attention to the Dublin Rose of Tralee who was announced last week. Since then, that woman has experienced some level of racial abuse online because of her religion and because of how she dresses. People are telling her she is not Irish. Now, she is a really strong woman, and she does not have to define her Irishness, as she herself said. I stand in solidarity with her. There are few supports to protect women online. We really need a law that can protect all women online, not just public representatives or high-profile women, but all women. For the past month, I have been living in hell with abusive comments from men calling me nothing but names for how I look. Out of pure spite I am wearing a tracksuit today. I will dress and speak the way I want to myself. Of course I am proud to be Irish, but no matter what I stand for, and I stand up for everything these men in the far right stand against, I am always going to be attacked for that. These people are trying to bully me out of public life. It is not going to happen.

Senators:

Hear, hear.

Eileen Flynn (Independent)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

We need protection for women. I have had to put safety measures in my family home where I am trying my hardest to rear two lovely children. I am never going to be the same public representative that I was four weeks ago. The Garda has been absolutely brilliant. I have been working with the guards over the past four weeks, but it does not stop the impact of having to look over your shoulder afraid. The majority are men and it is gender-based violence. You are living in fear in your own home. I have had to talk and communicate almost every day in the past four weeks with the Garda because there is something new coming through the emails. That is unfair, as it is to even stand up in this Chamber and be shaking while asking if I am talking right enough for them. I do not give two damns about them. It took women like me a long time to get these seats and we should be protected. All women in this country should be protected from online abuse. I bring that to the Minister's attention today. I am not making this debate about one single issue, but women are not safe in their own homes because of online abuse. I know the four Fianna Fáil Senators who brought this motion forward have all experienced abuse online. It is like pulling teeth trying to bring these men to justice. It is doable and you can do it. By God, you can do it, but it is a hard process.

We talk about children online. I brought forward the child trafficking Bill to name child pornography for what it is. I know the Minister gave a commitment last year to bring it forward in the Dáil. It would be a step forward today if there were any way we could rush up that legislation, to start from where we are at and protect the most vulnerable people in society, who are our children. It is not up to the parents. Parents may buy a child a phone for their Confirmation. Every house does it differently. I know I would not buy my children a phone, but I am not here to judge other parents. It is the multinational social media platforms that we are not holding to account, and we should hold them to account.

Lorraine Clifford-Lee (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to debate this important issue. As most Members of the House know, it is a topic I am passionate about. As has been outlined, domestic and gender-based violence is a scourge on society. We need a whole-of-society approach to eliminating this scourge and we need men involved in the conversation. We need positive role models. We need to highlight and tackle the issue and not sweep it under the carpet as happened here for so many years.The Domestic Violence Act 2018 was groundbreaking legislation. Coercive control was introduced by that Act for the very first time. It came into effect on 1 January 2019. It was one of the first laws in Europe to specifically criminalise patterns of psychological and controlling abuse within intimate relationships. Examples such as isolating people from family and friends, controlling money and access to essentials and the monitoring of phone and social media accounts are all recognised as abusive behaviours. Putting that into law for the first time was groundbreaking and opened people's eyes to what abuse is. I am proud of the role that I played in introducing that legislation. Fine Gael did not want it introduced at the time. I remember dealing closely with Senator Higgins and then Senator Bacik. The three of us met the Minister. We dug in our heels and, ultimately, it was included in the Act. However, there was significant pushback from the minority Government of the time. Thankfully, the numbers allowed us to get that through. I am glad that the Minister now in place is very responsive to this issue.

That legislation change the narrative and began recognising the behaviours as abusive and criminal. There have been 25 convictions to date and every time one of those convictions happens, I am very happy and proud of the work I have done. That legislation changed the lives of 25 women and their children. It protects women and opens others to recognising abusive behaviour. As I said, I am happy that the Minister is layering on top of that work. He is very responsive on the issue of gender-based violence in society. He has run with Jennie's law and has clutched it with both hands. I commend Jason Poole on the work he has done in honour of his sister, Jennifer, who was murdered by a man who had previous convictions for abuse. It is important to say that abusers do not change their spots. Once an abuser, always an abuser. People need to know the background of the people they have in their lives and in their children's lives. This legislation is a significant step forward for the protection of women and children in this country.

Valerie's law also is a very important step forward. Somebody who murders the mother of their children does not deserve guardianship because such people do not, and will never, have the interests of their child at heart if that is something they do. I take the point made by Senator Tully that there are other instances of serious abusive and harmful behaviour that should warrant the removal of guardianship. That should be examined by the Minister and his officials.

The expansion of refuge places is to be welcomed. I know it is an issue on which he is working hard. I was particularly happy to hear the announcement of a new refuge in my constituency. In Balbriggan, 13 emergency accommodation units are going to be opened. There will also be ancillary services. That is very welcome. I have spoken to the Minister about that issue in the past, even in his role as Opposition spokesperson as far back as 2016. It is not uniform across the country. Other Senators have pointed out the severe lack in other areas. I know this is a matter to which the Minister is committed. He is delivering in north County Dublin and I know he will deliver in other parts of the country.

The publication of the zero-tolerance national strategy is very welcome. It has to be front and centre of the work of the Department of justice and must reach into other Departments to allow for a national conversation. We need action. We cannot all be standing up in this Chamber every so often to talk about this issue. We need action, and I know the Minister is taking action. The national conversation that we must have must centre around a number of things, but access to violent and degrading pornographic material is crucial. Our young boys and young men are exposed to this from a very young age and it is having a harmful effect on their own development and on young girls and young women in Irish society.

On the subject of the national conversation we must have about violence and abusive behaviour, I commend Jacqueline Connolly, sister of Clodagh Hall and aunt of Liam, Niall and Ryan Hall, on her contribution in highlighting the abuse suffered by Jacqueline and her children. They were murdered by the violent abuser, Alan Hall, in their home in 2016. It was a watershed moment in one way but, very troublingly, the narrative that emerged from that incident was that it was something that we needed to tackle. Unfortunately, other women and their children have been murdered in their own homes and we are not yet at a place where women and their children are safe in their own homes. This is something we should have as a whole-of-society priority. There are issues around the manosphere and misogyny, as well as the online forums promoting violence, far-right ideology and abuse towards women. Senator Flynn touched on that.

I will turn to women in Northern Ireland. It is the most dangerous place in Europe for women. It is a matter I have spoken about on a number of occasions. I would like the Minister to deal with his Northern Irish counterpart to address the issue. It is a toxic hangover from the Troubles. The abusive practices of paramilitaries and a society ruled by violence and secrecy have seeped into society.

I know the Minister is committed to the new family law court complex in Hammond Lane. It has been a bugbear of mine and I look forward to its development.

Dee Ryan (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister for coming to the House for this important debate. I support many of the views expressed across the House today and thank my colleagues for bringing the issue forward. I thank the Minister for the work he has done on Jennie's law, Valerie's law, the reform of the use of therapy notes and the expansion of refuge places. I would also like to commend the fine work being done by those in the protective services units right across the country, who are dealing with this issue day in, day out in a very sensitive and responsive way.

When the Minister was in Limerick before Christmas last year, we brought him to see Adapt House, which is the only refuge service in Limerick city and county. It accepts referrals from the hinterland as well. Last year, it supported 124 families in need of refuge places and 700 women in outreach services, both in their own homes and in the spaces at Adapt House for therapies, counselling and meetings. It also handled 2,500 calls on its help-line. That demand is just in our small part of the world. We know how large this issue is from the figures mentioned in many Senators' contributions today.

When he was in Limerick, the Minister heard about Adapt House's plans for expansion of its services and I welcome the support and co-operation of the HSE, Tusla and Cuan in advancing those ambitions. The HSE owns a parcel of land in Limerick that it is trying to hand over to enable that expansion to happen. Interestingly, the facilities that Adapt House is going to be developing will not be further refuge spaces. It is developing further spaces for its outreach programme, including facilities for play therapy and group therapy. The demand is so large in the area that Adapt House could not possibly accommodate everyone who might seek a refuge space.

While I am hugely supportive of Senator Comyn's work on move-on accommodation and giving the local authorities a greater role in developing such accommodation, we need a radical shift in how we approach this issue. Why are we placing the burden of making oneself safe on the victim of the crime? Why is that the perspective through which we approach this issue when we know from speaking to Women's Aid, Adapt House and others that the greatest barrier to women coming forward and reporting this issue is that lack of move-on space? I have been doing a lot of work on this and would like to thank the Minister and his special adviser for being supportive of the draft legislation that I hope to bring forward, with his support and that of my colleagues, at a future point. That legislation is about protection for the victims of domestic violence, home security and protection in their own homes. I have been looking at what is happening in comparable jurisdictions, including France, Portugal and Spain, which are incorporating elements of electronic tagging on perpetrators of violence to ensure that there is greater protection for the victims of violence. We have to reconsider why barring orders are the only orders that exclude the perpetrator of violence from the family home. Why are we not also offering that protection to people through safety orders or protection orders? I will continue to look at this. In France the law allows judges to combine GPS monitoring with protection orders in criminal proceedings. Portugal also uses electronic monitoring to enforce no-contact and exclusion areas.

We have an opportunity here, with the Minister's support, to make the shift that needs to be made, to take the responsibility and the onus off the victims and place it on the perpetrator. Victims should not have to be keeping themselves safe and hidden away. They should not have to be reporting a breach of an order. The onus should be on the perpetrator of the violence to comply with a court order.

Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

The Minister is very welcome to the Chamber to discuss an increasingly important topic. When we look at the figures in Ireland, we see that there has been a 34% increase in domestic violence since 2021. There has been roughly a 3% increase year on year right around the country. That is quite shocking. We might feel that some of this is due to better reporting but we must always encourage and support victims in reporting domestic violence because it is only then that they can actually get help. Some of the measures the Minister has put in place have been about supporting victims to stand up and protect themselves and their children. All of the work the Minister has been doing to implement and support A Victim's Journey is really important.

It takes about eight attempts for a woman to leave her home when she is in danger. I have just finished reading a novel called The Names, which goes into the area of domestic violence. It describes a sliding doors moment and the way that members of a family, through three different scenarios involving the same people, have been the victims of domestic violence.It brings it home time after time that it takes eight attempts. Our responsibility as legislators, and the responsibility of the Minister for justice, is to try to ensure those steps are made easier all of the time.

When we look at the statistics across Europe, we see that gender-based violence is the most widespread human rights violation affecting women. It is an epidemic across Europe. Obviously not every country has signed up to the Istanbul Convention, and we have a duty and a role to encourage other countries to do so. Some countries have signed up to it but have not fully implemented it. Within the Council of Europe approximately 34 countries have signed up, which certainly is to be welcomed.

As a group, Fianna Fáil Senators felt it was really important to bring this motion forward to both shine a light on the work that is being done on the various legislation the Minister has brought forward, and to make people aware that those protections are there. It is also important to continually look for more. I know the Minister is in favour of and supports our call that there would be a refuge in every single county in Ireland. It is absolutely needed in a huge way. I know this year he is hoping to deliver 52 new family refuge units and 45 new safe houses. An additional 50 new units are under construction. That is really important.

I deal with the victims I meet in Teach Tearmainn in Newbridge. I thank the Minister for going there. We are looking for extended space there because unfortunately, a number of people are turned away on an annual basis because there is no room. We need to have that extra room. The supports that refuge centres give, even outside of providing that safe haven, are hugely important because, for some women, leaving home is not a reality for them for different reasons. We cannot question someone's judgment. We have to try to ensure they stay safe if they stay in a place that is not the safest for them. We also have to be able to provide a refuge when they choose to leave. The supports being offered through Teach Tearmainn and other refuges to children who are living with and have moved on from a place of domestic violence are hugely important to how they live their lives and will go on to live their lives, hopefully in a better way. Unfortunately, we often see situations - I am talking about the voice of men and women - where domestic violence is perpetuated from generation to generation, which is particularly difficult.

In terms of supporting victims, it is hugely important that a dedicated sexual offences unit has been established. The nationwide roll-out of the divisional protective service units to ensure vulnerable victims are dealt with in appropriate way by gardaí who have specialist expertise is very important. I have spoken to a number of victims who have praised this new training. They genuinely feel that it is really important and it gives a lot. The roll-out of the national campaign on the importance of consent, which we see on our radios and screens, is really important.

The fact that we are going into the Irish Presidency of the EU is significant. We need to keep speaking about this difficult issue. I welcome the fact that there are going to be two opportunities to talk about the online impact on young people. The high-level conference on online safety in September will be hugely important, particularly given that the views of young people will feature. The international AI and digital summit in Dublin in October, which will be a flagship event, is hugely important and will give us an opportunity to draw attention to the online abuse which so many people go through.

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Ar dtús, gabhaim buíochas le Seanadóirí Fhianna Fáil as an rún fíorthábhachtach seo a chur síos. Tá a lán oibre ag dul ar aghaidh i mo Roinn féin agus táim ag déanamh a lán oibre ar an gceist dheacair seo. I thank the Fianna Fáil Senators for putting down this extremely important motion. A number of people have indicated it is regrettable or even shameful that we have to discuss this issue again in the House, but it is better that we talk about it until such time as we can say it has been absolutely eliminated from Irish society. That will be a difficult task to achieve, but it is certainly preferable that we debate it and discuss it rather than what happened many years ago.

Senator McCarthy earlier gave an indication of some personal experience he had as a child. That we are discussing this problem now in Ireland is much better than what happened years ago, when it was to a large extent swept under the carpet. I also very much welcome the contributions from individual Senators. I will not go through all the individual issues they have raised, but I hope to deal with them in the substance of my response here.

It is important to point out that this problem is not confined to Ireland. As many Senators have indicated, it is a significant issue in Northern Ireland and, regrettably, throughout Europe and the world as well. I had the pleasure last week of attending the North-South Ministerial Council meeting in Armagh, where I spoke with Naomi Long, who is the Northern Ireland Minister of Justice, about this very issue. We had a lengthy discussion about an awful case in Northern Ireland. I do not know if people here have read the harrowing details of the murder of Katie Simpson. It is not something unique to Northern Ireland; we have had similar examples here. In fact, there was a certain cross-Border element to the ongoing torture and coercive control of that young woman by the man responsible for her murder, in that some of the equestrian training happened in Lifford in County Donegal. We can really see that we need an all-Ireland response to these issues.

Before I deal with the substance of the issues raised, I want to emphasise a point in response to the focus that has correctly been placed on refuge spaces and safe accommodation. Sometimes the topic of domestic violence can be focused on exclusively through the prism of how many refuge spaces we have - in fairness, this did not happen in this House - but that is not the way we need to focus on this issue. Clearly, refuge spaces are absolutely important. I want to see refuge spaces and other safe accommodation in every county. However, we cannot allow that to become the sole and primary focus of our response to the scourge of domestic violence. It should not be the case that we elevate as being the primary solution the departure of a woman from a home where she has been abused. We all recognise in this House that what really is essential is that the person responsible for the abuse is removed, not the person who needs to seek refuge in the short term.

As Senators are aware, in my Department there is a new statutory body called Cuan, which implements Government policy and puts forward progress reports in respect of how I am doing and how the Government is doing in response to this critical issue. Zero tolerance is the principle by which we operate. It is an important principle because there can be absolutely no tolerance of this type of behaviour. The Government has made significant progress in implementing the zero-tolerance national strategy to combat domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. We have introduced new legislation, expanded and improved services, and reformed how the justice system responds. The existence of Cuan is an important element in that response insofar as we have a separate statutory agency that is vigorously implementing Government policy.Ultimately, however, I and the rest of the Government are responsible for ensuring we have a thorough response to it. Last month I launched the progress report on the implementation of the zero-tolerance strategy in 2025. That report is well worth reading. It highlights developments across key priority areas, including improving access to justice, safe accommodation issues, consent education and other matters. We also have significant work by Cuan. We now have a more developed, more robust monitoring framework. It is important there is a progress report on the objectives I have set out to ensure we have zero tolerance to see how they are being implemented because unless we have that level of oversight, we cannot deliver at pace or scale the responsibilities and obligations that need to be implemented. The four pillars of the Istanbul Convention form the basis of what we trying to do in this area. These are prevention, protection, prosecution and policy co-ordination. They certainly guide the policy objectives and progress contained within the progress reports.

Safe accommodation is obviously an important part of this. It is certainly the case that if a woman is facing violence in the home, there will inevitably be a requirement for short-term accommodation so she can flee the home. As I said previously, the ultimate solution is that barring orders be granted against the abuser. On the provision of safe accommodation, I am working closely, as is Cuan, with domestic violence services to ensure we increase refuge accommodation and reach the strategy objectives. Obviously one of the most visible commitments under the strategy is to see the opening up of new refuge centres. I was in Dundalk recently and turned the sod on one there. As Senator Clifford-Lee said, there is work being done in Balbriggan. In Cavan and Monaghan as well, there is now a plan to have a refuge in each place. I also had the benefit of being in Limerick with Senator Ryan.

By the end of this year, the number of safe accommodation spaces will be substantially expanded. In addition, I have ensured we continue to invest significantly in expanding capacity and strengthening support services across the country. As has been indicated, I secured funding of almost €80 million under budget 2026 to support front-line critical services.

A number of Senators mentioned another important aspect of what we are doing, namely, trying to change the law. I come forward with the legislative proposals, as do many Senators and TDs, but ultimately it is the function of this House and the Dáil to determine whether they become law. As has been indicated, the Criminal Law and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2026 was published in January and brings forward further amendments in relation to the disclosure of counselling notes. As was indicated by Senator Comyn, unfortunately we have got to a stage where counselling notes are routinely provided to the defence in prosecutions for rape or sexual assault. I am going to change that. I am going to introduce a statutory presumption of non-disclosure in respect of counselling notes. This means the default position will be that counselling notes will not be disclosed, save for a very small number of cases where a judge, having looked at the counselling note, will say that note is relevant to the determination of the guilt or innocence of the accused. That is going to be a significant alteration of the law. It will apply not only to counselling notes but also to other sensitive records of a victim and their personal data, such as medical records, child protection records and other such documents. I believe I will bring Committee Stage of that Bill before the select committee on 19 May.

As has also been mentioned, I secured Cabinet approval to publish the guardianship of infants (amendment) Bill 2026, sometimes referred to as Valerie's law. I will be introducing that legislation in Dáil Éireann on 21 May. It will remove, in certain circumstances, guardianship rights from individuals convicted of killing the other parent of their child. As I have said previously, I commend Valerie French's brother David on his instrumental role in campaigning for this.

I also secured Government approval for the drafting of the criminal justice (domestic violence register) Bill 2026. I have been given an assurance I will have a stamped copy of that in the next number of weeks. I will not tie down an exact date but it is coming and will certainly be introduced in the Houses before the summer recess. That will establish a publicly accessible domestic violence register of judgments, to be published by the Courts Service. I thank Senator O'Loughlin for her great assistance in this. As she mentioned, this was inspired by Jason Poole, whose sister Jennifer was murdered by a man who had a very serious conviction about which she knew nothing. We need to recognise that if people are convicted in our courts of serious offences, those offences are recorded in public and it is a public record that people should be able to access. I am facilitating that in the legislation that is being brought forward.

It is also important to recognise children and young people are victims in their own right of domestic violence in the home. It is a hugely significant change that centres the specific needs of children and young people who, in the past, had primarily been identified as witnesses of abuse. They are not witnesses of abuse. Any child growing up in a house where there is domestic violence will be traumatised by that. That is also why I was recently in Dundalk. Senator Comyn will probably think I am spending too much time in Louth. We recently had a cross-Border initiative with the PSNI and the teaching boards in County Down about Operation Encompass. We are putting this in legislation. It will ensure that where a child is affected by domestic violence, there is a timely, co-ordinated and child-centred response, including at their school. That is something we are progressing and there is great cross-Border co-operation on it. It will be advanced further.

Another issue in respect of the courts is how we hear the voice of the child. It can be very difficult and challenging for the voice of the child to be heard but I have proposals on how that can be done. I have received reports in my Department that I believe will be advantageous to children in the family law context.

Ireland's Presidency of the Council of the European Union is commencing in July and I have made a decision that there will be, certainly at the informal meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council in July, a very strong focus on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence against women and girls. Member states are busy transposing the new EU directive on combating violence against women in advance of next year's deadline. This is a huge body of work that will standardise measures across member states in respect of criminal offences, policy development, data collection and co-ordination. Ireland is ahead of most EU countries when it comes to the transposition of the obligations under this directive. Very many justice or home affairs ministers from other member states want to discuss with me how we are responding to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. That does not make me in any way complacent - it is a big issue - but the fact there is a lot going on here is probably the reason for the increase in reporting we are seeing. It is important we make this scourge as socially unacceptable as drink driving. We just need to get it out from behind closed doors and emphasise it will not be tolerated. That is why the courts and the legislation we are proposing are important.

Another important and interesting topic is the impact that violent and extreme pornography is having on the development of the sexuality of young people, including teenage children and young men and women. I suspect most of us in the Chamber are not aware of what is happening on the Internet but the level of violence online in pornography is completely distorting young people's view of sexuality for those who have seen it. There is a real obligation on us to ensure we do not allow that distorted perception of sexuality to dominate or influence how people's sexuality develops. Senator Clonan very sensibly referred to the obligations of the social media companies to try to ensure this type of information is kept away from children.My view is that when it comes to violent pornography and horrific scenes, we should be protecting everyone from that and not just children. I can tell the House there are issues I am considering in this regard.

Under my direction, work has begun on developing the fourth national strategy, which will maintain and build upon key achievements, actions, priorities and learnings from the zero-tolerance strategy. The bedrock of this process will be consultation and co-design with stakeholders in the sector so that their practical experiences, insights and expertise will inform every aspect of the strategy. Listening to Senators and hearing their contributions is also extremely important to me in formulating the strategy.

Anne Rabbitte (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister very much for his comprehensive response. It is greatly appreciated. Work is being done on the Criminal Law and Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, the Guardianship of Infants (Amendment) Bill and the domestic violence Bill, which will be known as Jennie's law. There are also the plan and the focus for the EU Presidency and the fourth national strategy. It is very welcome to see the work that is ongoing with the Minister and officials in the Department and I recognise it involves not only that Department. We also see the work that needs to be done by the Department of Children, Disability and Equality.

I thank everybody who has contributed to this afternoon's conversation. It has been really worthwhile. It is important to keep the focus on this and keep it on the agenda at all times. We have heard the statistics with regard to every 15 minutes and with regard to one child every hour. There is an obligation on us to keep this conversation alive and keep it very real in our communities. Any one of us who has an office and a phone knows this too well. We have had too many phone calls from women trying to flee the home and to understand what the next steps are like. I thank Senator Comyn for her contribution on where we will move on to and our next steps. We need to have practical solutions for how we can keep people safe in their communities while letting them have the opportunity to live with dignity in their communities, with their children attending their local schools while they continue to be in the workforce.

I again thank the Minister for all the work being done in the Department. It is greatly appreciated. I thank him also for coming back to the House to keep us informed and abreast, and to keep us on target to ensure that refuge spaces are being delivered and that the Bills are progressing through the various Stages.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

When is it proposed to sit again?

Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

At 10.30 a.m. tomorrow.

Mark Daly (Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

Is that agreed? Agreed.