Colm Burke
Ceist:34. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Minister for Justice her legislative priorities in relation to tackling domestic, sexual and gender-based violence; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [26075/22]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 24 May 2022
Ceisteanna (34)
Freagraí scríofa
As the Deputy is aware, I am currently leading work on a new whole of Government strategy to combat domestic, sexual and 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 of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.
As part of this, I am focused on strengthening legislation to combat all forms of DSGBV.
I recently secured Government approval to draft legislation to make stalking and non-fatal strangulation standalone offences.
While both stalking and non-fatal strangulation are already crimes, I am proposing a number of changes to make the law in this area clearer and stronger.
These new provisions, which will be included in the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, will:
- Amend section 10 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997 to introduce a standalone stalking offence, and amend the existing harassment offence
- Empower the courts to issue orders restraining stalking behaviours without a criminal prosecution
- Strengthen procedural protections for alleged victims of stalking during the court process
- Introduce a standalone offence of non-fatal strangulation
The evidence is that when a specific stalking offence is introduced, it leads to a greater awareness of the crime and an increase in the number of crimes reported and ultimately prosecuted.
In the summer, I will publish a new Hate Crime Bill which will introduce new, specific aggravated offences with enhanced penalties for crimes motivated by prejudice against certain characteristics, including gender. This will mean that certain types of crimes can be prosecuted as hate crimes where they are motivated by misogyny.
For other crimes, where there isn’t a dedicated hate-aggravated offence, the new legislation will require the court to take misogyny into account where there is evidence that this was the motivation, to reflect that fact in the sentence, and to reflect the fact that the crime was aggravated by this form of prejudice in the formal record.
Before the end of September, I will publish a new Sexual Offences Bill which will introduce important changes including:
- Extending victim anonymity to further categories of victims
- Repealing provisions for sentences to be delivered in public
- Legal representation for victims in certain circumstances
Separately, I will seek to enact the Sex Offenders Bill later this year which will strengthen the management and monitoring of sex offenders in the community.
Under Justice Plan 2022, I have committed to examine reforms to the law on the mandatory life sentence for murder to allow judges set a minimum number of years to be served. I believe this reform will give the public more confidence that, in the most heinous murder cases, judges will have the discretion to set a minimum sentence.