Tom Brabazon
Question:167. Deputy Tom Brabazon asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration if he will commit to reviewing barring orders, safety orders and protection orders. [6154/26]
View answerTuesday, 27 January 2026
Questions (167)
Written answers
The Domestic Violence Act 2018 provides for applications to be made to court which range from temporary emergency orders to longer-term safety and barring orders. Each order has specific conditions attached, tailored to the level of risk and urgency faced by the victim.
A safety order is an instruction from the court which can last up to 5 years and stops the person accused of abusive behaviour from being violent, or making threats of violence. The respondent does not have to leave the home. If the person is not living with the applicant, the safety order bans them from watching or being near the applicant’s home, following or communicating (including electronically) with the applicant, or a dependent person such as a child.
A protection order is similar to a safety order, meaning that the respondent remains in the home, but is ordered not to use violence, threats or molestation. If the respondent is not living with the applicant, it may also prohibit them from watching, or being near, the applicant’s home. Protection orders may also prevent the respondent from following, or communicating (including electronically) with the applicant, or a dependent person. It is a temporary order, put in place until the full hearing for a safety, or barring, order takes place.
A barring order requires the person accused of abusive behaviour to leave the home and prohibits the person from entering the home again. The order also bans the person from being violent, or making threats of violence, watching or being near the applicant’s home, or following or communicating (including electronically) with the applicant or a dependent person. A barring order can last up to 3 years.
In addition, the Domestic Violence Act 2018 provides for applications for interim barring orders or emergency barring orders.
While there are no plans at present to amend review the orders provided by the Domestic Violence Act 2018, all of my Department’s legislation is kept under review to ensure it remains current. The Deputy will be aware that significant work has been undertaken by the Department of Justice, Home Affairs and Migration in recent years in tackling DSGBV and this work is ongoing.
I recently published the report of Mr Lorcan Staines SC, ‘An Assessment of the Efficacy of Bail Laws in Ireland’. That report recommends the addition of a number of scheduled offences to the Bail Act 1997 including offences under Sections 38 and 39 of the Domestic Violence Act 2018 regarding forced marriage and coercive control. The implementation of these recommendations is currently being examined by my Department.
Further to this, last month I secured Government approval for the drafting of the Sexual Offences, Domestic Violence and International Instruments Bill 2025, which will amend the 2018 Act to establish a publicly accessible Domestic Violence Register of Judgments, to be published by the Courts Service. This new law, Jennie's Law, named after Jennifer Poole, will allow for details of convictions for serious domestic violence offences against a partner or former partner to be included on the public Register of Judgments.
The General Scheme of this Bill was subject to pre-legislative scrutiny by the Committee on Justice, Home Affairs and Migration on 20th January and I look forward to receiving the Committee’s report.