Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour)
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Question 269: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the level of funding for domestic violence allocated by the State in each of the past ten years; the number and location of refuges funded or part funded by the Government; if there are proposals to increase the State funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20111/08]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will appreciate that funding for action on domestic violence encompasses direct action by identifiable victim support services as well as a broad range of actions across the justice, health, housing, education and family support sectors. Moreover, actions particularly by the State sector to deal with domestic violence may be part of a wider family support programme which is not identifiable under a domestic violence heading. The overlap between domestic violence and other family and community issues, for example in terms of Garda Síochána and Health Service Executive (HSE) frontline staff action, creates a challenge to the quantification of the total State allocation on this issue. This is one of the issues which will be addressed, insofar as is possible, in the context of the preparation of the proposed National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence.

I can inform the Deputy that the bulk of direct funding in relation to domestic violence service provision is provided by the HSE which funds the core work of the NGO support services in this sector. Prior to the establishment of the HSE, the Department of Health and Children provided this funding through the Health Boards. The Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government provides funding through the local authorities for the capital and maintenance costs of women's refuges and other crisis accommodation. In the timeframe available it has not been possible to provide a detailed reply to the broad question raised by the Deputy. I can provide information in relation to my own Department and I have requested details of direct funding allocated to domestic violence from all the other Departments concerned. In addition I have sought information from the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government and the HSE on the number and location of refuges funded or part-funded by the Government. I will forward this information to the Deputy as soon as it is available.

Direct funding by my Department has been allocated in relation to awareness raising and perpetrator intervention programmes. The Deputy should note that funding for awareness raising includes funding for both domestic and sexual violence.

I can inform the Deputy that funding of a total of €21m has been allocated to my Department for action on both domestic and sexual violence under the National Development Plan 2007-2013. The increase in funding in 2007 and 2008 coincides with the establishment in June, 2007 of Cosc — the National Office for the Prevention of Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence, an executive office of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform with a cross-government mandate. Cosc's key responsibility is to ensure the delivery of a well co-ordinated "whole of Government" response to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.

Other funding has been provided to the sector by my Department in recent years under headings not specifically or exclusively linked to combating domestic violence. For example, funding has been provided from the Department's research budget, in order to support research activity relevant to domestic violence. As I indicated, further details have been sought and will be supplied to the Deputy as soon as possible.