Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 39: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if his attention has been drawn to the report of the Rape Crisis Network Ireland, Rape and Justice in Ireland, which found that 7% of rapes reported to the Garda resulted in convictions; his plans to deal with this situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5591/10]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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I am aware of the report on the study commissioned by the Rape Crisis Network Ireland entitled Rape and Justice in Ireland. The study relates to the attrition of rape cases, that is, the lack of progress on to completion of criminal cases, and more specifically, to the stages at which cases drop out from the criminal justice system, that is, from the initial report stage to the final stage of court proceedings. It should be noted that cases may not be progressed through the system due, for example, to insufficiency of evidence.

Over the past 18 months or so the main priority of Cosc - The National Office for the Prevention of Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence, has been the development of a National Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence for the five-year period from 2010 to 2014. I can inform the Deputy that the issues of attrition of rape cases was raised, and has been considered in the context of the development of the National Strategy. The Strategy is close to completion and will be considered by Government shortly.