The senseless killing of Ashling Murphy two weeks ago took a wonderful young woman from her family and from her wider community. It also led to an outpouring of grief the length and breadth of the country. In thinking of Ashling, we also remember Urantsetseg Tserendorj, Jastine Valdez, Ana Kriégel, Nadine Lott and so many other women who have been, and are, victims of violence against women. As we grieved for Ashling, I believe that as a society we have also determined that we will no longer tolerate violence and a…

I thank all the Senators for their contributions. I thank those who have given of their own personal lived experience because it is not easy to do, certainly not standing in Parliament. Indeed, I thank those who have spoken on behalf of victims and survivors. I thank everyone for their proposals and suggestions. I genuinely mean this. There is no right or wrong answer. I want to work with everyone. Where there are suggestions and proposals, I have obviously taken note today but if there is anything further that Sen…

I thank the Acting Chairperson for the time to come back in and respond to the Deputies. I thank the Deputies for their contributions, including those who have contributed a number of times. This is also my third time to discuss this issue in the Chamber in less than a week. It is clear from the very fact that we had to extend this debate and discuss this issue numerous times just how important an issue it is for colleagues because it impacts each and every one of us. It also shows a clear determination to do bette…

I thank the Deputy for his question. I watched the first programme which referred to a case many years ago in my constituency. A series of programmes has been broadcast over the last while. The Garda Síochána will always keep an open mind on any type of cold case or anything that has happened in the past, whether a case needs to be reviewed or reopened or on a more general basis in terms of any other arm of government where there needs to be further reviews or further work done. It is something the Garda Commission…

The Deputy will have seen from the debate yesterday and, indeed, from the debate over many years that there is no single way to deal with domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. However, making sure that our laws are adequate is one way. It is not just introducing new laws but also improving the existing laws. Two such areas are non-fatal strangulation and stalking. I have listened to victims over the last year or so, particularly Eve McDowell and Una Ring on stalking and, sadly, some of my own friends on their…

The past week has seen people across the country mourn the loss of Ashling Murphy, a beautiful young woman who represents the very best of us. We all stand in solidarity with Ashling’s family, including Ray, Kathleen, Cathal and Amy, her boyfriend Ryan, and her community. I offer my deepest condolences to them. May Ashling rest in peace. The many strands of her cruelly short life were brought together yesterday in a funeral that was distinctly Irish. There was wonderful music that reminded us of her talent, as well…

I thank all colleagues for their contributions. Much has been said tonight so I will try to be concise in my response. I thank many of my colleagues for sharing their experiences. We are not talking about something that is happening to other people. This is something we all go through and it is important to allow people to share their experience, so I thank colleagues for that. I also thank them for their views on what we can collectively do next to try to deal with this issue and awful events like the murder of As…

It is true that the Ireland of today is a different country from the Ireland of the 1970s. We are more open and willing to confront issues that were previously brushed under the carpet, such as domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, and we are more willing to listen to often unpalatable truths about our society. As we all know, however, despite seismic shift in attitudes over the past 50 years towards those experiencing domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, those protections, services and supports are ne…

I move: That Dáil Éireann, noting that the Government on 7th December, 2021, nominated Judge Rory MacCabe for appointment by the President as a member of the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission and as its chairperson, recommends, pursuant to section 65(1) (b) of the Garda Síochána Act 2005, that Judge Rory MacCabe be appointed by the President as a member and as chairperson of the Commission. The appointment of members of the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, GSOC, is governed by the provisions of the Garda Síoc…

I thank the Deputies for their contributions and their good wishes for Judge MacCabe. I wish to touch on a number of points that have been raised. We all recognise the vital role that GSOC plays in oversight. We all acknowledge that the vast majority of people working with An Garda Síochána do exceptional work in protecting us and keeping our communities safe. The vast majority of people believe that as well. We have seen just how connected members of An Garda Síochána are with our communities, particularly during …

I thank Deputy Kenny for raising this matter. I fully appreciate the concerns raised by people, including members of the public and those working in public transport systems and specifically those who must deal with antisocial behaviour and criminal activity. If we are honest, we have probably all seen videos and various recordings circulating throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, particularly the past few months, of really unacceptable behaviour. People's health is being put at risk at well. It is essential that peopl…

It goes without saying that whether it is people hopping on a bus to go to a local town, students going to college or somebody going to Dublin for a day out, there should not be an issue with people feeling unsafe on public transport. That is well understood within An Garda Síochána. The Garda have been proactive in recent times, with engagement not just within Dublin but in various regions. We have seen a number of charges arising specifically from Garda actions, either for public order incidents, antisocial behav…

What is clear is that the Garda is very aware of the concerns. The sole objective in carrying out the work it has done and the engagement with the services is to ensure people travelling on public transport and those providing the service are safe. There has been engagement and pilot programmes in Dublin and this will reach to the regions. There is also engagement between the control centres to ensure we have access to good-quality closed-circuit television. There have been discussions with Irish Rail to ensure we …

The Irish Prison Service has undertaken excellent work during this pandemic to prevent the spread of Covid-19. A wide range of measures was introduced to address the risks facing the service. The service is fortunate to have an executive clinical lead and a head of infection control in place. The excellent work of its teams is guided by the advice of the National Public Health Emergency Team, NPHET, and is consistent with prison specific guidance of the WHO and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control…

I have absolute confidence in the management and all the staff and teams working in our prisons. At every stage, they have tried to protect not only themselves but the prisoner population. As I said, for the most part of last year, there were no cases. As virus cases have increased in number, we have, as the Deputy noted, seen what is happening in the community being reflected in prisons. We have also seen a high uptake of vaccines in prisons, as there has been in the community, and this has protected very many peo…

There have been hospitalisations in prisons in the same way that we have seen hospitalisations across the country due to Covid-19. Unfortunately, the Prison Service has not escaped that. The first death in custody was recorded in recent times and I know that was extremely distressing and upsetting for everybody working in the Prison Service. It was, however, the first death, which again shows the effort and focus there have been on keeping people safe, protecting them and ensuring as many people as possible, if not…

As the Deputy will be aware, the Garda Commissioner is responsible for the management and administration of Garda business, including the redeployment of gardaí and its staff. It also includes management of human resources and industrial relations matters and I do not play role a role in these matters. I want to be clear about what happened. The event did not take place in person. That was very clear. My Department's role was to allow for the event to take place. This event had to take place by the end of May 2020 …

I will state clearly that I was not lobbied on this matter. There was a very clear process. The GRA engaged with my Department throughout last year to try to ensure this conference could be held. The work that was done between my Department and the Attorney General was simply to allow for this conference to take place. As the Deputy will appreciate, the association is independent in its management and administration, as is the Garda Commissioner with regard to the management and administration of An Garda Síochána.…

The Ampersand report was very welcome. It made a number of recommendations. I believe it was welcomed by the organisation, the Garda Commissioner and everybody else who has seen it. My understanding is that the timeline for its implementation runs to 2025, so there is obviously some way to go. The Commissioner has taken a personal interest in this matter and has recently received an update on how the recommendations are being implemented. It is not that I simply do not want to intervene but that I do not believe I …

The Government and I, as the Minister for Justice, are committed to tackling sexual violence and sexual crime in all its forms. I wish to ensure, most importantly, that victims feel empowered to come forward to report sexual crimes and that when they do, they are fully supported in every step of the process and that their interaction with our justice system is as supportive as possible. I urge all victims of sexual crime, regardless of how it happened, to come forward and I reassure them that they will be treated r…