Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 October 2020
86. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science the extent to which allegations of bullying in academia have been identified and resolved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31279/20]
Amharc ar fhreagraMy question refers to allegations of bullying alleged to have taken place or that is still taking place in third level institutions and to request that an investigation be carried out.
I thank Deputy Durkan for the question. I am greatly concerned by the issues of both sexual harassment and bullying that have emerged in respect of both staff and students within higher education institutions.
Our higher education institutions, HEIs, should be and must be a place of inclusivity, tolerance, respect and quality. Our higher education institutions have a duty of care to their students and staff, and a responsibility to foster a campus culture that is clear in the condemnation of unwanted and unacceptable behaviours, which act as a barrier to their safety and their active participation in college or work life.
On 4 August 2020, in my first letter to university presidents, I wrote to the presidents of all publicly funded higher education institutions and I have requested that they develop and publish, by February 2021, specific institutional action plans on tackling sexual violence and harassment. We can have all the frameworks we want but we need specific plans for individual institutions. What will they do to make their campus deal appropriately with any issues of bullying, sexual harassment or violence? These action plans will involve the implementation of systems that record the number of incidents of bullying, intimidation or harassment including sexual harassment. I have given the Higher Education Authority a new role in overseeing the framework for consent in regard to HEIs and statistics will be reported annually to the HEA once the action plans in each institution are in place.
I have also requested that a survey be undertaken on harassment, sexual harassment and bullying of both staff and students in higher education institutions. The planning of this survey has commenced, and the HEA is consulting with the Irish Universities Association and the Technological Higher Education Association in this regard.
We will have legislation before this House, probably in the new year, on how we overhaul governance of this sector. I believe that is badly needed and there will be a chance for us to debate how best to ensure there is legislative protection and proper governance and oversight of institutions also. I want the Deputy to know that I am extremely committed to ensuring a safe and respectful environment for all staff and students in our higher education institutions and I hope the steps I am undertaking upon entering office will help to contribute significantly to the realisation of this objective.
I thank the Minister. Was it a surprise that this activity was ongoing in third level institutions? Had there been many complaints made over the years in respect of it and, if so, what was done about them? Are they ongoing and being investigated? Presumably, the survey being done will uncover some of that. Is the Minister satisfied that the action being taken now will be adequate to stamp out this kind of activity once and for all?
I do not think any one of us can be surprised that in any workplace in any environment bullying and harassment can take place but to be honest I am surprised, and I do not consider myself as having lived under a rock, at the scale and amount of it I am hearing, particularly when it comes to sexual harassment and violence. I have convened the national advisory group, chaired by the National Women's Council of Ireland, which advised me on these issues. The Union of Students in Ireland, USI, are on it also along with lecturers. Some very good work is being done across the system but I am alarmed by the results of the survey carried out by NUI Galway and USI in regard to sexual harassment and violence. We need to remember that while universities are autonomous institutions we fund them. Autonomy can never be an excuse for not having the most robust procedures in place. In terms of the data the Deputy looked for, because they are autonomous I do not have a collated version of that available to me now but I believe these action plans, with oversight and implementation from the Higher Education Authority, it having an oversight role in implementation, could potentially be a very positive development. We need a big cultural shift and I want to try to bring that about.
I thank the Minister for his comprehensive reply. Complaints were made to the institutions. Can he give any indication at this stage as to what the response was on foot of those complaints? Were they taken seriously? Was any internal investigation carried out at the time, which one would have expected to take place? If so, what action, if any, was taken? Was there a common reaction or no reaction or action at all?
I do not have that comprehensive information available to me tonight but I will get more information for the Deputy on it. I would refer to an example that is in the public domain. It is in respect of Dr. Aoibhinn Ní Shúilleabháin who I have met on two occasions and am in contact with. The way she was treated was absolutely disgraceful. To get to the core of the Deputy's question, it is clear that in all cases they have not been dealt with properly, and Dr. Ní Shúilleabháin's case is an example. What we need to do as policy makers and legislators, and what I need to do as a Minister, is use that example to help bring about the cultural change that needs to be brought about. My instinct is that we cannot deal with all of these issues as human resources, HR, matters. They are not HR matters. There are not two sides to a sexual harassment issue. It is not some sort of petty disagreement. It is a potential criminal offence. It is criminal wrongdoing. The way some of the institutions have dealt with these issues is quite concerning. That is one case we all know about because Dr. Ní Shúilleabháin spoke about it publicly, and we thank her very much for doing that. That has to be a real impetus to help bring about the sort of change the Deputy is talking about.
