I thank the Deputy for her continued and genuine interest in this work.
The changes made by the 2017 Sexual Offences Act allow those engaged in prostitution to provide information to Gardaí, for instance if they were subjected to violence by clients, without fear of prosecution for selling sexual services.
Section 27 of the Act provides for the review to which the Deputy's question refers.
As the Deputy is aware, my Department commissioned an independent consultant to undertake this statutory review but, due to a number of reasons, it wasn’t possible for the review to be completed within the desired timeframe.
I very much regret the delay.
My Department has been working to put in place a replacement to complete this important review and yesterday sought expressions of interest through notices in the national media, online through social media, and through academic networks.
Again, I reiterate that I regret the delay with this review and want to see the report finalised and published as soon as possible. The intention is that, once a new study lead is engaged, this review can be brought to a conclusion without any further undue delay.
I can assure the Deputy that once the review is completed and the report received, any recommendations made will be considered as a priority.
