Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 25 January 2022
490. Deputy Neale Richmond asked the Minister for Justice if she will outline a schedule of funding for organisations tackling violence against women to ensure that their work is sustainable to ensure retention of staff and specialisation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [3163/22]
View answerI can assure the Deputy that I am deeply committed to tackling domestic, sexual and gender based violence in all its forms, and to supporting victims of such heinous crimes.
As the Deputy may be aware, my Department provides funding to promote and assist the development of specific support services to victims of crime, including victims of domestic and sexual crime, within the criminal justice system. Our commitment in this area is reflected in the additional funding that has been secured by my Department under Budget 2022. A total of €13m has been allocated to further our work in these important areas.
This includes an additional €2.4m allocated for specific awareness raising and training programmes on domestic, sexual and gender based violence (DSGBV), bringing to €5.35m the funding available for combatting DSGBV.
€4.9m has been allocated to supporting Victims of Crime – this includes the retention of emergency COVID-19 funding of €400k and an additional €785,000 in direct supports to NGOs and specific domestic violence intervention programmes
An additional €1.1m will be used to begin putting in place a legal advice and legal aid service in court for victims of sexual violence.
And an additional €1 million is being provided under the Garda Vote to refurbish the Divisional Protective Service Units.
The additional funding secured under Budget 2022 will allow us to continue to build on the work undertaken since I have taken office in this Department. We will continue to improve the system for victims, to better support them and through various means to raise awareness of, and to combat, all forms of domestic, sexual and gender based violence.
I am unable to provide the Deputy with a detailed breakdown for 2022 as the final allocations have not been finalised.
In addition to the above, a review of the supports and funding of civil society organisations providing frontline services was conducted to identify where gaps may exist and how to bridge them. Specific geographical areas and categories of victims that are not adequately covered by NGO supports have been identified and my Department agreed revised funding of €445,000 to ensure that we fill the gaps in supports and categories of victims identified.
To promote more sustainable service delivery and planning, we are also offering multi-annual funding commitments to key NGOs we work with and where funding covers staff salaries. These funding grants cover accompaniment to court, to Garda interviews and to sexual assault treatment units and emotional support.
Tusla has statutory responsibility for the care and protection of victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. I have been informed by Minister O'Gorman that he has secured an increase of €41m for Tusla under Budget 2022 which includes the budget for funding organisations that deliver frontline services, including the funding of refuge spaces. Since 2014, this part of Tusla's budget has almost doubled from €17.5m to €30m in 2021.
As I am sure the Deputy is aware, last week it was announced that my Department is going to assume responsibility for services for victims of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence, in addition to the policy responsibility that my Department holds. We are currently working on a detailed plan for how this will work which will be brought to Government.
I am 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. It will set an overall goal of zero tolerance in our society for domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.
The Strategy has been developed in partnership with the sector to ensure it is targeted, comprehensive and effective in achieving all of the goals set out.
In the coming weeks, I will be inviting feedback through a focused consultation process on the final draft to ensure the Strategy is correctly emphasising the areas that people feel need the most attention.
I expect to bring the finalised strategy to Government in March, and I will oversee the implementation of the strategy.
