Cathy Bennett (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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81. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the timeframe in which a domestic violence refuge centre will be opened in Cavan and Monaghan. [54044/25]

Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
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Combatting all forms of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence and ensuring that victims and survivors receive the support and care they need is an absolute priority for me.

Since its establishment last year, Cuan has been working to accelerate the delivery of refuge spaces across the country.

A key priority for Cuan is the development of a domestic violence refuge in the Cavan and Monaghan region. Cuan is actively engaging with the key stakeholders including Safe Ireland, the lead Approved Housing Body on this development, the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Cavan and Monaghan County Councils and the Housing Agency, to progress the development of an eight-unit refuge in this region, which will also include community-facing ancillary support services.

In November 2024, the former Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee TD and the former Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD welcomed the commencement of a site selection process for this domestic violence refuge in the Cavan/Monaghan region, one of the regions identified as a ‘Phase 1’ priority for refuge development under the Zero Tolerance strategy.

Since then, potential sites for refuge development, in both Cavan and Monaghan, have been identified by the working group and site visits were arranged by Cuan for all key stakeholders. Following these site visits, a site has been selected in County Monaghan for development, following a feasibility assessment undertaken with the Housing Agency.

I understand that Cuan has agreed to allocate additional resources to support Safe Ireland to expand its services to provide both emergency refuge and Safe Home accommodation in the Cavan/Monaghan region. I welcome the very strong commitment from all partners to progress both models of accommodation in this region.

While currently almost three quarters of the population in the State is within 30 minutes of a refuge location, Cuan is acutely aware of the need to improve on this, and to ensure that services are accessible to everyone living in rural and urban areas. Achieving this, including through the completion of a National Services Development Plan, is a core objective of Cuan’s Corporate Plan 2025-2027, which was published at the end of last year.