Domestic Violence
Seanad Éireann — 2026-03-04
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Alison Comyn (FF), Nominated by the Taoiseach

Cuirim fáilte roimh na haíonna. A few weeks ago, I wrote in The Journal about domestic abuse against men in Ireland and the urgent need to fund a fully staffed 24-hour helpline through Men's Aid. I did this very carefully knowing that it is a very sensitive space, and determined that raising the issue would not in any way take from the very real and disproportionate impact of domestic violence on women. What I did not fully anticipate was the response I would get. Since that article was published, I have been contacted privately by several men who have experienced and are still experiencing domestic abuse. Some are still in abusive relationships. Some have left. Some have custody of their children. All of them describe the exact same thing: silence, stigma and shame. Several told me that simply seeing the issue acknowledged publicly made a massive difference. One man said it was the first time he felt the experience he has suffered for years was being taken seriously. Another spoke about the help they have received from Men's Aid and how critical that support was at a moment when they felt completely isolated. That should make us stop and think.
We have made massive strides in how this country understands domestic abuse. We recognise coercive control. We understand that abuse is not just physical but psychological, financial and emotional. We have invested in services and supports for women who remain the majority of the victims, but we also have to recognise that some men are victims too, in opposite-sex and same-sex relationships. Domestic abuse is about power and control. It is not about physical size or stereotypes, yet for many men, the barrier to seeking help is not only about their fear of their partner, but fear of ridicule, disbelief or being assumed to be the aggressor. The stigma attached to a man admitting he is afraid in his own home remains really profound.
There is currently no fully funded 24-hour national helpline dedicated to male victims of domestic abuse. Men's Aid provides an essential service but it does not operate around the clock. Crisis, as we know, does not operate within office hours - currently Monday to Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. The moment someone reaches for help is often late at night, when the house is quiet and courage briefly outweighs that humiliation. At the moment, that phone remains unanswered. I have been told by support organisations that when men flee abusive situations, even with their own children, they face additional systemic barriers. When presenting as homeless, they are sometimes asked why they would volunteer to leave their home and make themselves homeless. That question reflects a societal assumption that men simply cannot be victims in the same way. If someone leaves, it is because they are unsafe. Maybe their children are unsafe. They are not choosing homelessness; they are choosing survival.
This is not a request - and I must stress this - to divert funding from women's services. It is not about creating competition between these victims. Compassion is not a limited resource, and protection should not depend on your gender. It is about ensuring that our domestic violence framework is complete and total. I am asking the Minister of State to outline what consideration has been given by the Department to provide sustainable funding for a properly staffed 24-hour helpline for male victims of domestic abuse, or even funding that would support staff from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week. What steps can be taken to ensure that men fleeing violence, particularly those with children, are recognised appropriately within our housing and emergency accommodation systems? Ending domestic abuse begins with breaking that isolation. When someone finally decides to seek help, it is our responsibility to make sure that someone is there. No victim should reach out in the dark and hear nothing back.

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Source: Houses of the Oireachtas. Licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The Official Report is revised after first publication; the fetch timestamp below identifies the version quoted.

Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-03-04/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:54:43+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-03-04