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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 22 Mar 2006

Vol. 616 No. 5

Adjournment Debate.

Violence Against Women.

I thank the Ceann Comhairle for the opportunity to raise this issue of services for women affected by domestic and sexual violence. I have raised it in the House on a number of occasions. As a long-standing director of the women's refuge in Clonmel, Cuan Saothar, I have a particular interest in the matter.

I call on the Government to fund these services properly and to remove the cap on them which has in effect been in place since 2002, which is having a very adverse effect and is hindering the development of the services. Domestic and sexual violence occurs all over the world and is widespread in Ireland too. The underfunding of the services is unacceptable and is false economy. We must immediately remove the capping on the funding. The lack of funds undermines the abilities of the services to address the extensive, pervasive and ongoing effects of sexual and domestic violence.

The trauma of that violence has been proven to be less severe, long-term and disruptive to a person's life when addressed through immediate support and counselling. Consistent underfunding means these centres are prevented from providing the critical early intervention which they are uniquely equipped to provide.

We know that one in every six survivors of sexual violence will become a psychiatric hospital inpatient, compared with one in 46 of the non-abused population. Some 50% of sexual violence survivors will be prescribed anti-depressant medication compared with 9% of the non-abused population. Without access to immediate and expert care, a survivor experiencing flashbacks, panic attacks and other symptoms is likely to make repeated and long-term demands on local general practitioners, on the mental health services and on other health services. The funding of these centres is urgent, as is the removal of the cap. It is false economy not to fund these services properly.

I refer in particular to two centres in my own constituency, Cuan Saothar, a women's refuge based in Clonmel which provides a service for all of south Tipperary, and the south Tipperary rape crisis centre, also located in Clonmel and providing a service for the entire county. Both centres are under severe financial pressure. Cuan Saothar provides residential facilities for women suffering violence as well as information, support and outreach services, while the rape crisis centre in Clonmel provides services throughout the county. Both centres will have significant deficits by the end of the year, €20,000 in the case of the rape crisis centre and €90,000 in the case of Cuan Saothar. They provide services to vulnerable people throughout the county.

However, this is a nationwide problem. There are many other centres dealing with domestic and sexual violence and the area has not been properly funded, at least since 2002. Properly supporting people in these vulnerable situations is a measure of the sort of people we are, the country we are, the culture we have and the Government we have. I call on the Minister to remove the capping and properly fund these services. Not to do so is a false economy.

Mine is a related matter. I have sought permission from the Leas-Cheann Comhairle to raise the urgent need for Government funding to enable the Galway rape crisis centre to continue to provide its services. Such additional funding will enable it to meet its shortfall in the current year and lay the basis for an expanded service, given the heavy public demand.

As we have just heard, there is an urgent need to put the funding on a secure basis. The Galway rape crisis centre, for example, receives €180,000 in the current year while its need is about €360,000. It could provide a comprehensive service for about €570,000 annually. One might therefore well ask if this involves the provision of a basic right. Reason suggests the funding be provided on a statutory basis rather than relying on voluntary fundraising year in, year out. In the 22 years since the centre was founded there have been many crises and the centre has had to be saved time and again. It has 11 members of staff. It began as a service run by volunteers to become one that has six part-time councillors and project workers, two education workers, two part-time administrators, a co-ordinator, and ten to 15 volunteers.

The position is simple. Because of what is available, it can run a service that is operational for five and a half hours per day Monday to Friday and three hours on a Saturday but no service on Sunday. The Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children, Deputy Tim O'Malley, will be aware of the SAVI report in 2001 which reported on the whole area of sexual violence. One of the most disturbing findings of that report was the reluctance of victims to report or speak about their experience. They find the setting of the rape crisis centres very satisfactory in terms of the counselling and professional care. The care is not just provided on the premises. It extends to accompanying victims, to reporting and visiting them. When I say a service that would be complete and full, what I mean is a service that would be able to extend into these reasonable areas where there is a demand for it.

In this day and age we must realise that recovery from a sexual attack, which is traumatic, takes a long time. We have just heard from Deputy Healy the long-term consequences in terms of the treatment and also the difficulty and failure to recover. The service should be provided on a rights basis with adequate supporting statutory funding. The idea, for example, that the service might continue or not on the basis of voluntary funding through participation in, say, the women's marathon or something similar, is no longer satisfactory. In the current year, as I understand it, the centre needs an extra €300,000. If one takes the figure which appears frozen at approximately €180,000, it has to be unfrozen immediately.

In most cities of the size of Galway there is a sexual assault unit. For example, there is one in the local hospitals in Tralee and Waterford and in the Rotunda in Dublin. If such a unit was attached to a Galway hospital it would be a useful and valuable ancillary support. It would mean that all these centres and services could be provided. They are not a luxury but a basic right. It is no longer acceptable that they would move from one precarious situation to another given that they provide such a valuable and necessary service.

Most of the survey work for the SAVI report was carried out in July 2001, almost five years ago. That report made eight specific recommendations ranging from education, the removal of all barriers to access to reporting and so on and, the important point, that the extension of services be anticipated and provided in advance before the need became so demonstrated that it could not be avoided. I ask the Minister of State to make an announcement that he intends to address these issues as a matter of urgency.

I am taking the Adjournment on behalf of my colleague, the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney. I thank Deputies Healy and Michael Higgins for raising this matter.

The national steering committee on violence against women was established following the report of the task force on violence against women in 1977. It is chaired by the Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy Fahey. My Department is represented on the national steering committee and the Health Service Executive is also represented.

The purpose of the national steering committee is to provide a multi-disciplinary, multi-agency and cohesive response to the problem of violence against women and in so doing to progress the recommendations of the task force. The steering committee is representative of a wide range of interests concerned with violence against women and has a number of objectives which include ensuring that regional and local structures are established, developing public awareness campaigns; co-ordinating and advising on the distribution of resources among the health regions; and co-ordinating and advising on ongoing development of policies including those concerning perpetrators, criminal justice intervention, services and supports.

Last year the national steering committee undertook a national review of sexual assault treatment services. That report is complete and is due for publication in the coming weeks. The Tánaiste is keen to see the recommendations from this report treated as a priority within the Health Service Executive and that the HSE funding priorities for 2007 will reflect this.

The Government is committed to working with all interested parties including service providers and has undertaken a range of measures to reduce the incidence of domestic violence, to respond to the needs of victims and perpetrators and to raise awareness among the public about the dynamics of this crime. These measures can be seen across a wide range of Government policy. They include legislative measures, Garda response, health services, the national steering committee on violence against women and national research and treatment programmes for perpetrators.

A key indicator of Government commitment to the issue can be seen in the funding for service provision. Funding for service provision for victims is channelled primarily through the Health Service Executive Vote. In addition, the Departments of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Education and Science, Social and Family Affairs, Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs and the Environment, Heritage and Local Government also contribute to responding to the issue.

Funding in the health sector has risen from approximately €3.8 million in 1997 to approximately €12 million in 2005. This shows the commitment of Government and of my Department to addressing this important issue. The allocation of this funding including to individual rape crisis centres is a matter for the Health Service Executive. The Health Service Executive, formerly the health boards, has worked closely for many years with a range of NGOs, including the rape crisis centres. My Department will continue to monitor the level of investment in services for victims of sexual offences, including rape.

The provision of all emergency housing, including women's refuges, is a matter for the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. Funding is provided to the Health Service Executive for the operation of existing refuges. My Department will continue to monitor the level of investment in these services also. The Tánaiste has asked the Department, together with the Health Service Executive, to undertake an analysis of the level of service provision in the "violence against women area" with a view to planning future service needs. This report which has recently been completed will inform future service planning and provision. The Health Service Executive has responsibility to ensure a more equitable and consistent approach to service delivery and the funding of these services throughout the country and I understand has commenced a review of arrangements.

In regard to the Galway rape crisis centre, the Health Service Executive acknowledges the valuable work the centre provides and will continue to work in partnership with the centre. The Health Service Executive has confirmed that it met the Galway rape crisis centre in January and has allocated funding for 2006.

Will the Minister of State look at that again to see if the funding can be increased?

I will. The executive will continue to engage with the organisation in the context of service demands and development requirements. Recently, the Tánaiste received a delegation of the relevant "violence against women" organisations providing front line service responses to violence against women. The Tánaiste acknowledged the key role played by the NGOs in this sector and recorded her appreciation of the important work they do. She is considering the report presented by the delegation at that meeting.

In keeping with the recommendations of the task force for violence against women, the Health Service Executive works through the regional planning committees to determine the needs of their localities and to co-ordinate statutory and voluntary approaches to these needs.

I will take this matter up. I understand the urgency of the matter and the essential requirement and will speak to the Tánaiste about it.

Crime Levels.

Crime figures in County Louth are up significantly since 2000. For instance, last year in the county of Louth, of the 841 burglaries, only 60 were detected. I express my deep concern about the rising crime levels in the Drogheda, Ardee and Dundalk areas since 2000. The figures speak for themselves. Despite the best efforts of the Garda, the trend in crime is up significantly and we urgently need more gardaí on the beat to deter violent and ruthless criminals in our midst.

A recent reply sent to me by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform revealed that Drogheda headline crime is up a massive 62% since 2000, while the Garda headline crime detection rate in Drogheda is down significantly from 34% to 24%. The Garda in County Louth is seriously under-resourced and Garda overtime rates in Drogheda and Dundalk have been cut by a massive €163,000 since 2000. In Dundalk, headline crime is up 25% while the detection rate is down from 34% in 2000 to 20% last year.

The Government clearly lacks the will to put thugs behind bars and is losing the battle against serious crime. There are no separate Garda crime figures available for Ardee, which is must change. Many citizens have expressed serious concerns to me about the crime levels in the Ardee area and in the interests of transparency and openness, the way we collect the data must be adjusted to ensure Ardee is entered separately in its own right.

The picture that emerges from these facts is one of appalling Government neglect and sheer ministerial arrogance, while the fall in the detection rate clearly shows the urgent need for more gardaí. I will give the Minister of State some examples. In 2005, the last year for which figures are available, despite the best efforts of the Garda, of 1,313 thefts, only 325 were detected. That means 988 thefts remain undetected in Louth today. Of the 52 sexual offences committed last year, only 14 were detected. That means 38 of those crimes are undetected. Of the 71 arson offences, only five have been detected. Of the 841 burglaries, only 60 have been detected, which is a detection rate of 7%. Of the 34 robberies, only three have been detected, which is a detection rate of 8.8%. One homicide remains undetected.

I stress that I have the greatest respect for the hard work, commitment and professionalism of the Garda and its efforts to stem the rising tide of crime and anti-social behaviour in my county, but their efforts will only be successful if the Government gives them the resources they need to win this war against crime.

I thank Deputy O'Dowd for raising this matter. I am speaking on behalf of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform who, unfortunately, is unable to be present. I assure the Deputy that the Minister and I share his concerns about crime in Drogheda, Ardee and Dundalk.

Before commenting on the matter identified by the Deputy, it is helpful to put the issue of crime into perspective. The overall level of headline crime in 2005 is lower than that for 2003 by 1.6% and for 2002 by 4.4%. Furthermore, in 1995, with a population of almost 3.6 million, there were 29 crimes per 1,000 of the population while in 2005, with a population of over 4.1 million, there were 24.6 crimes per 1,000 of the population. However, the Minister has expressed his disappointment that there was an overall increase of 2.78% in headline crime in 2005 and he does not downplay his concerns in that regard.

The Minister is pleased to see that the Garda Policing Plan 2006, under the heading "Policy Reviews 2006", includes a commitment to assessing causes of the rise in crimes of burglary in 2005. This work has commenced with a view to reversing the current upward trend and identifying strategies to target this significant issue. It is intended to mount special operations in particular problem areas. The Minister is also pleased to note that the Garda manpower in Drogheda, Dundalk and Ardee Garda stations has increased by 15%, 17% and 11%, respectively, in the period 1997 to date. The Minister also understands that a review of the opening hours in Ardee Garda station has resulted in an increased Garda presence in the town. In addition, it should be pointed out that the Garda resources of the areas the Deputy has referred to are further augmented by a number of Garda national units such as the Garda National Immigration Bureau, GNIB, the Criminal Assets Bureau, CAB, the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, NBCI, and other specialised units.

The timescale for achieving the target strength of 14,000 members of the Garda Síochána, in line with the commitment in An Agreed Programme for Government, remains as when the Minister announced the Government approval in October 2004. The phased increase in the strength of the Garda Síochána to 14,000 will lead to a combined strength, of attested gardaí and recruits in training, of 14,000 by the end of this year. This project is fully on target and will be achieved. As part of the accelerated recruitment campaign to facilitate this record expansion, 1,125 Garda recruits were inducted to the Garda College during 2005. The college will induct a further 1,100 recruits this year and again in 2007. The first incremental increase of newly attested gardaí under the programme of accelerated recruitment took place on 15 March 2006. The Minister has repeatedly promised that the additional gardaí will not be put on administrative duties but will be put directly into frontline, operational, high-visibility policing.

The Minister is also very pleased that the Garda Síochána is now better resourced than at any time in its history. The funding for the Garda Síochána which the Minister secured in the Estimates for 2006 is a historical high of over €1.29 billion, compared with just €600 million in 1997. The provision for Garda overtime in 2006 will be €83.5 million, an increase of €23 million on the allocation for last year. This increase will greatly aid the planned deployment of a visible policing service in a flexible, effective and targeted response to criminal activity and crime prevention. The €83.5 million in overtime will yield 2.725 million extra hours of policing by uniformed and special units throughout the State.

Strong provisions are in place to combat anti-social and unlawful behaviour. The primary basis for the law regarding public order offences is the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994, which modernised the law in this regard. Furthermore, because of the Minister's concerns about the abuse of alcohol and its contribution to public order offending and broader social problems, he brought forward tough new provisions to deal with alcohol abuse and its effect on public order in the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2003. The Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 2003 provides the Garda Síochána with additional powers to deal with late night street violence and anti-social conduct attributable to excessive drinking.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Minister recently circulated his proposed Committee Stage amendments to the Criminal Justice Bill 2004. Included in these amendments is a provision to allow for the introduction of anti-social behaviour orders. The Minister's proposal will allow the Garda to apply to the courts by way of civil procedure for an anti-social behaviour order which will prohibit the person who is the subject of the order from behaving in an anti-social way. The orders will be civil orders and the question of an offence will arise only if the person in question willfully defies the order and continues to engage in the anti-social behaviour which is the subject of the order.

I want to address the particular issues raised by the Deputy. Any discussion regarding crime trends in the areas mentioned by the Deputy must take account of the increase in their populations. For example, the population of Drogheda increased by 15.7% between the 1996 census and the last census in 2002. I have no doubt this increase will continue in Drogheda and the other towns and will be reflected even further in the forthcoming census.

The Minister is informed by the Garda authorities that the local Garda management in Drogheda district has been targeting burglaries in housing estates with covert and overt foot patrols to ensure a visible Garda presence in the areas concerned. The Minister is further informed that gardaí from Ardee and Drogheda districts participate in Operation Apron, which is a regional initiative to target criminals travelling through the region and reduce incidents of crime within the region. The Minister is advised that criminal activity in Dundalk is being targeted by a number of proactive operations to identify the main suspects and their associates. Intelligence indicates that a number of crimes are being committed by criminals from outside the jurisdiction. The Garda authorities liaise closely with the Police Service of Northern Ireland in identifying those suspected of involvement in such criminal activity from both sides of the Border.

The Minister wishes to assure the Deputy that he and the Garda authorities in the areas mentioned are committed to reducing crime by the effective use of Garda resources and will continue to target criminal behaviour with effective policing.

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