Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
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18. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality her plans to provide additional resources to An Garda Síochána to tackle all forms of domestic violence; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25993/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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Tackling domestic, sexual and gender based violence is a priority for Government.

We are committed to ensuring An Garda Síochána have the legislation, equipment and training necessary to combat all forms of DSGBV and support victims and survivors.

I have also prioritised work in my Department to strengthen the criminal law in this area, including through the introduction of standalone offences of stalking and non-fatal strangulation.

I am progressing a new Sexual Offences Bill which will, among other things, better support victims. Separately I will seek to enact the Sex Offenders Bill later this year which addresses the management and monitoring of sex offenders in the community.  

The Garda budget for 2022 is at an all-time high of over €2 billion, an increase of approximately €300 million since 2019.

Investing in IT and training also supports Gardaí in their work to tackle violence against women and this year I was pleased to secure an additional €10.5 million for operational expenditure – including provision for mobile devices, equipment for specialist units and on-going training for priority areas. The budget also includes provision of €147 million for ICT and Building Programme and the organisation’s transport fleet.  All these investments help in tackling DSGBV as well as other crimes.

The rollout of body worn cameras to Gardaí, as provided for in the Garda Síochána (Digital Recording) Bill 2022, will be particularly helpful to first responders to reports of domestic abuse.

As the Deputy is probably aware, there is now a Divisional Protective Services Unit in every Garda division, with staffing in these specialist units having increased by over 70 to 332 since July 2020. 

The Garda National Protective Services Bureau has completed a nationwide canvass to determine the training needs for DPSU staff and a new training programme will be ready for delivery in the coming weeks with in-person training expected to recommence in Q3 of this year. 

While officers attached to DPSUs receive a range of specialist training, all Gardaí are trained as first responders so they are equipped to deal with victims, including of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.

The new national strategy, which I will bring to Government shortly, will articulate the actions to support the goal of zero tolerance for gender-based violence.

Under the strategy, there will be a continued focus on awareness raising and education, not just across the criminal justice system, but across all of society’s approach to this topic.

This is with a view to ensuring everyone recognises their role in reaching our shared objective of a society where there is zero tolerance for any form of DSGBV.

Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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19. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if she intends to increase sentences for sexual assault and violent offences; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [25995/22]

James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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As the Deputy is aware, Minister McEntee is currently leading work on a new whole of government strategy to combat domestic, sexual, gender-based violence. This new plan will have a particular focus on prevention, and on ensuring victims are better supported, including in court proceedings.

While sentencing is a matter for the judiciary who are independent and subject only to the Constitution and the law, my Department is committed to working to strengthen the legislation in place to combat violence against women.

For example, Government recently approved the drafting of legislation to make stalking and non-fatal strangulation standalone offences.

Under Coco's Law, enacted last year, the maximum penalty for harassment has been increased from seven years to ten years and/or an unlimited fine.  The penalty is now on the higher end of the range of penalties imposed internationally for harassment and reflects the harm it causes. 

In the summer, the new Hate Crime Bill will be published which will introduce new, specific aggravated offences with enhanced penalties for crimes motivated by prejudice against certain characteristics, including gender. A new Sexual Offences Bill will also be published later this year which will include, in particular, provisions to implement commitments in Supporting a Victim’s Journey.

Later this year Minister McEntee will also seek to enact the Sex Offenders Bill which will strengthen the management and monitoring of sex offenders in the community.

In addition, under Justice Plan 2022, we have committed to examine reform in relation to the mandatory life sentence for murder to allow judges set a minimum number of years to be served, having regard to the aggravating and mitigating factors in any particular case. The recommendation from the Law Reform Commission’s 2013 report on Mandatory Sentences will be examined as part of this process.

I think the Deputy will agree it is imperative that our law is kept updated in order to tackle domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in all its form, and to ensure everyone, regardless of gender, feels safe and is safe in our communities.  The prioritisation of this hugely-important work is evident in the policy and legislative developments implemented by this Government and those that are currently being progressed.

Emer Higgins (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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20. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if she will report on her Department’s progress in increasing the number of women’s refuges available across the country; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26069/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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The government is committed to ensuring that everyone who needs a refuge space will have access to a refuge space. I fully acknowledge the need for a significant increase the provision of refuge spaces and I am committed to achieving this in order to ensure that victims have a safe place when they need it.  

As the Deputy will be aware, Tusla, the Child and Family Service, completed a review of accommodation services for victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence which identifies priority locations where there is a particular urgency.  It is my intention to use the findings of this review as one of the ways to address gaps in the provision of refuge places.

While the review found that a minimum of between 50 and 60 new refuge places are needed as a priority, further analysis has identified 10 locations nationwide where the delivery of 82 family refuge spaces would have the most impact if prioritised.

These locations have been chosen on the basis of required proximity to a refuge, as well as a need for refuge spaces per head of population in densely populated areas.

They represent areas where there is the most significant under-provision and are a starting point to increasing refuge spaces comprehensively and in every county across the country.

It is our shared goal that everyone who needs a refuge space will get one, and the Government is committed to working with the sector to achieve this.

I also acknowledge the need to make it easier for organisations to access necessary funding and obtain the support needed to bring forward quality proposals.

At present, the time taken from initiation to the delivery of units can take years.  To examine how it might be possible to shorten that timeframe, I have established a high level Inter-Departmental Group to review the current system for the provision of refuge spaces and to identify changes that can be made to the system to deliver additional spaces in the shortest timeframe possible. The Group is due to report to me in June.

As part of the work to finalise the third National Strategy to combat Domestic, Sexual and Gender-based Violence, my Department is examining how to advance the recommendations made in the Tusla review to both improve how, and how quickly, we deliver refuge spaces.

The strategy will contain actions for doing so both in the immediate and longer term.