Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 7 November 2024
306. Deputy Matt Carthy asked the Minister for Justice the services available to persons experiencing domestic abuse in Castleblayney and the surrounding area; her proposals to enhance these services; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [45988/24]
Amharc ar fhreagraA central element of delivering on the Zero Tolerance goal of the Third National Strategy was the establishment of Cuan, the statutory domestic, sexual and gender-based violence (DSGBV) agency, which I officially opened at the start of this year.
Cuan has a specific mandate to drive the implementation of the strategy across Government, bringing the expertise and focus required to tackle this complex social issue.
Under Budget 2025, I was pleased to announce that DSGBV funding has increased to €70m, of which €67m is allocated to Cuan.
This more than triples the funding for DSGBV services from when I first became Minister for Justice, and represents a further significant increase for 2025.
Increasing funding for Cuan to €67m will provide for additional resources to support the implementation of the Zero Tolerance strategy.
One of the overarching goals of the Zero Tolerance strategy is to ensure that everyone who needs a refuge space will get one and under the strategy we have committed to doubling the number of refuge units across the country.
This represents the fastest ever expansion of refuge accommodation in this country.
Last week, I welcomed the commencement of a site selection process for the building of a domestic violence refuge in the Cavan/Monaghan region, one of the regions identified as a ‘Phase 1’ priority for refuge development under the Zero Tolerance strategy to combat domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.
Developments will also include Safe Home accommodation, as we are aware of the need for services to be accessible to those living in rural areas.
This will be developed in the context of a wider array of services which will be part of a National Services Development Plan.
Cuan is now responsible for coordinating all Government actions set out in the Third National Strategy and has a dedicated team in place to support the development of domestic violence refuges.
As this question relates to work being carried out by Cuan I have referred it to the agency for direct response.
