Ruth Coppinger
Dublin West · People Before Profit-Solidarity · Ireland
“Next Wednesday, the trial continues of the Ulm five, including the Irish citizen, Daniel Tatlow-Devally. A delegation of TDs and Senators, including me, will attend the trial in Stuttgart next week.”
“This man said of one woman that he would attach her to a concrete block. He said of another that he would set fire to her. Should this person be getting a pay off from the Army? No, of course, he should not. He should have been put on trial.”
“I have very little time left, but I want to put on record that the woman in question was abused by an Army officer using military equipment and surveillance technology, which is extremely scary. She made a complaint, which has never been pursued.”
“When is the victims of crime Act 2017 going to apply the Army? The Women of Honour have pushed for change so that if there is abuse within the Army there will, we hope, be mechanisms to deal with that, but what about women who are abused by Army personnel who are not in the Army?”
“This officer was involved in a GoFundMe campaign, where rapists' names were used as a joke by the various men who contributed to it. I do not think rape is funny and the Army should not either. That GoFundMe campaign was left up for a long time. Why is the Army a law unto itself in relation to gender-based violence?”
“The victim's belief is that the military prosecutor has evidence of a very dangerous man but for some reason, the Army does not seem to be concerned because it has not prosecuted him on those charges. Why would the Army not want to prosecute somebody? Are we at war or something? Why is it so secretive?”
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“We have the second highest prices in Europe, at 38% above the EU average. Restaurant prices are 29% above average, we are the most expensive for electricity, gas and fuel, housing is 50% more expensive and childcare is 58% dearer than the EU average. We have the most expensive transport and public transport costs. Irish people also have medical costs that do not arise in other European countries, such as when people have to go to the GP because they are sick or their child is ill. Another aspect to consider is the gendered nature of the cost of living. A total of 22% of female workers, or nearly one in four, are in the lowest-paid employment sectors in our economy. Women are paying much more and suffering much more because of the cost of living.”
“A reduction in childcare costs to €200 per month, as promised in the election but since studiously forgotten, would make such a change in so many workers' lives. Introducing free public transport is something the Government could do that would be hugely beneficial for commuters and for the environment as well. Other proposals in the motion are for a second, targeted tier of child benefit payments and the reinstatement of energy credits. What we need in this country is a complete shifting of wealth. Ireland has the worst figures in Europe for the share of wealth that goes to capital versus labour. The Government's amendment refers to Ireland being in the middle when we adjust for purchasing power parity. This uses figures that are completely different from the reality.”
“Stopping price gouging by food and energy companies is something the Government could actively do. Another suggestion is introducing price controls on food, electricity, gas and fuel. When we were all growing up, the State used to own ESB. What was wrong with that? The idea that competition would bring down prices has been proven to be a fallacy. It would be a hugely popular move if the State, rather than letting people be ripped off, took control of electricity, an essential of life, and reduced its price to the lowest possible level. The motion proposes implementing a rent freeze, introducing a living wage, benchmarking social welfare increases to the minimum standard of living index and introducing a weekly cost-of-disability payment.”
“Could the Government be any less caring on this issue? It has not put forward a solitary meaningful measure. Let us start with the Minister of State's claim that the best way out of poverty is through employment. That absolutely is no longer the case. There are tens of thousands of workers living in poverty because of the cost of living, including the cost of childcare, housing, electricity and insurance for cars and so on. He cites statistics to show the economy is doing well but we all know we have a problem in Ireland with the leprechaun economics of GNP and GDP. The economy doing well is not a barometer that shows we do not have a high cost of living. That is the reality. The statistics are distorted very much by high earners and those at the top with wealth. The actions called for in the motion are incredibly reasonable.”
“The clubs are then expected to find the insurance, so the public facilities are no longer in use. This has to stop. We should give young people that outlet so that they do not have the excuse to be on public roads and all local authorities should be involved in providing such facilities.”
“It is heartbreaking and her mother's call-to-action was inspirational. Scramblers should not be permitted on public roads or in public spaces. Forget about having tax and insurance, which is in the current law. They should not be on public roads. They are not suitable. They are far too dangerous. A person should need a licence to buy one or to sell one and should be part of a motor club which is where scrambling is actually meant to take place. In this context, I want to mention that when I was on the council, it took the initiative and set up a scrambler bike club in Mulhuddart where I live. It is now closed because the club is expected to pay the insurance, and it cannot get insurance. We have this scenario where clubs are using public facilities set up by councils.”
“It would be utter hypocrisy to begin a debate on road safety without mentioning that it does not just apply to 16 and 18-year-olds and that it also applies to TDs and that we have a TD in this House who was driving at 190 km/h. They could have killed anybody on that road that day only the gardaí arrived. It was the second time this person had an offence. They paid compensation to a family in 1990 when they were councillor. To be frank, it is utterly disgraceful that someone like that has not been mentioned by the Minister for justice. There was no political penalty except coming off a committee. They are still on other committees and they spoke here yesterday. It is not setting a very good example because, as I said, it is not just young people. I want to send my sympathy to the family of Grace Lynch.”
“This Bill will only make it worse. It has all been said here tonight. If you allow a landlord to introduce new rules for new tenants, they will create new tenants. That is just a reality. It is an iron law of economics that that will happen. The Government is giving that power because it wants more vulture funds and more investment funds and that is its prime consideration.”
“Then we have a social crisis where we cannot get essential workers whom we need to bring down the CDNT waiting lists, to work in the schools, etc. We had one case in Dublin 15 where four teachers were evicted from the one campus. There were two schools together on the campus. Four teachers got evicted at the one time. That is what is facing people. I absolutely despair for young people now. I was talking to an American who has lived here for a year and they cannot believe the housing crisis in this country. They are just gobsmacked by the lack of action and the lack of care or thought about it. They have not seen anything like it in the US, which is the belly of the beast of capitalism, as we know. They just could not believe that it is continuing the way it is. Our nieces, our nephews and our children are ending up in Australia.”
“Those are the goings-on now all over the suburbs of Dublin and I am sure in many other counties as well. It is not even being brought to light in the media, so we have to bring it out to light in the Dáil. That is the level of what Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael have created. I will back this up with facts and show that it is not just anecdotes. According to a survey from myhome.ie , just 7% saw any difference in housing policy from this Government. They had no hope whatsoever. The eviction rate had gone up in quarter 3 of last year by 35% in preparation for these new laws, and rents are now one third higher than they were at pre-Covid levels and two thirds higher than the Celtic tiger peak. The Government is benefiting landlords at every single turn.”
“It is a matter of trying just to get things put back until we can find there is no emergency accommodation in Dublin. I do not know if there is any discussion on that in the Dáil. People are just expected to go onto the streets. A lot of these people tend to have nobody else to support them, no near family members. We had one eviction in the Clonee area where the woman, who did nothing wrong in her entire life, was paying her rent, the landlord wanted to sell and the council would not acquire the property because the budget was used up. She ended up with the sheriff coming and being pulled out of the house in her dressing gown, onto the street. She actually spoke the same language as the bailiffs doing the evicting so she could hear everything they were saying and was appealing to them. She was treated brutally and manhandled.”
“This is going on in Clonsilla, in Dublin 15. Fair play to that tenant for fighting that and for winning the case with the RTB but €7,000 in compensation is not very good, to be frank, for the level of suffering they faced. It is not much of a deterrent either, if you think about it that way, and that needs to be looked at. These are the conditions people are being forced into, and it is not just young people either, as we have all heard. A lot of older people are coming to our attention. In my area there is an eviction tsunami. A couple of months ago, in Dublin 15 alone, 115 families had registered with the local council that they had notices of termination. They are just the ones who told the council. We have been trying to assist people. I have the sheriff on speed dial on my phone. I never thought I would reach that level.”
“I have heard some contributions in here in my time but the contribution from the Fianna Fáil TD, the lament for landlords we just heard, was quite incredible. Her whole contribution was about the difficulties of the landlords in this era, in 2026. This is at a time when teachers, therapists and building workers cannot find anywhere to rent, when the average rent, as we know, is now €2,500 in Dublin. The Deputy's contribution showed very bizarre level of detachment. She certainly was not thinking about the likes of a tenant in my area who is reported in the newspapers today as having been charged extra for the use of a fridge, charged extra for the use of a dining table to study on and then asked to do work on the adjacent Airbnb the landlord was renting out, where 12 building workers were residing.”
“We are actually meant to believe that 13 gardaí wearing stab vests could not disarm a young fella with a kitchen knife - a young fella who happened to be black, by the way - and that the only solution was to get out an NP7 within one minute of arriving on the doorstep and shoot him - not once, not twice, not three times, not four times, not five times but six times, including twice in the back. It is an absolute travesty of justice that this family have been denied by the DPP, who was handed a two-year investigation and said, "Nothing to see here". The DPP also denied Nikita Hand and denies rape victims regularly. We need to talk about the DPP in this country and their inordinate power to prevent very important cases getting to court. George Nkencho should be alive today, and this State has covered this up for over five years.”
“Are gardaí accountable or are they a law unto themselves? Who should police the Garda? I refer to a constituent of mine, George Nkencho, who was shot six times on his doorstep. We are meant to believe that that is okay and there is "nothing to see here". His family have never been allowed a public inquiry or a trial. The minimal thing they got was an inquest, which ended on Friday. That is a very limited process. It does not allow for cross-examination, examination of forensics, all those kinds of things.”
“There are also employment issues. They are putting people like delivery drivers and riders out of jobs. The economic impact is always talked about from the drone base. They have to be gotten to the drone base. The products are often driven to the drone base. It is not environmentally clean either.”
“These are not just moaning Minnies, as this company tries to portray them as. It is very disparaging towards local residents and it is saying this is politically orchestrated, when the person running it is also very political themselves and regularly shares posts about Trump, military stuff and so on. The key point is that the communities themselves must be the final arbiters of this. Community assent has to be sought for this technology. We need a law whereby commercial drone delivery is not allowed in very built-up residential areas or for commercial fast food. There are occasions where food might need to be delivered, which is no problem in outlying or isolated areas, but it is too disruptive. Given there are one or two companies doing it now, what it will be like when there are more companies doing it?”
“... The noise echoes in our cul-de-sac ... My autistic child finds the noise overwhelming ... My elderly parents find it overwhelming ... The drones passed directly over a family picnic ... This is not what I signed up for. There are so many messages about the feeling of being under surveillance and of having absolutely no say. Drone Action in Dublin 15 is a group of residents who got together and produced a newsletter. As TDs, we are always giving out newsletters and the feedback we get is generally very minimal. Drone Action sent out 5,000 newsletters and got back 300 responses. They asked for people who are interested in a no-fly zone over their house because representatives of the company operating this currently told the transport committee it would respect that. So 300 replied to this, which that is a huge rate of feedback.”
“Beyond the serious privacy and safety concerns, persistent drone noise is disruptive and it undermines the quiet, residential character of their neighbourhood. It adds yet another layer of stress to daily life and reflects a broader problem - the growing incursion of tech companies into our communities and lives without any democratic oversight or meaningful accountability. It is about profit. Drone delivery of fast food and consumer goods is not a public necessity. That sums it up. Feedback was sought by a resident in Castleknock through a Whatsapp group. The replies were as follows: I worry about the environmental impact ... The frequency of flights has noticeably increased ... There was a close encounter with a bird last week ... The presence of drones makes outdoor meals and dining uncomfortable ... Why weren't we properly consulted?”
“In fairness, the company has testified at Oireachtas committees. It is perfectly out there. A representative of that company is quoted in today's paper so it is a bit silly to say we cannot talk about the company. In any case, it is important to show people how the company has operated without permission. I am assuming the Minister of State does not think it is okay to just breach planning permission and that people should go through the planning process. The Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, said there were gaps. There are not gaps; it is just a Wild West situation where these people can do what they want to do. We all agree with drone technology for certain uses, but the impact it is having is clear in the example from a resident who wrote to me.”
“Due to community opposition, this has been pushed back on two of the sites and the other will come up for renewal shortly. I imagine there will be opposition to it. The reason is that we all agree it is great having technology, but not when it means constant noise. There is a privacy issue also and this has been proved. A French company came over and did excellent work whereby it got one and showed how it worked. A photograph is taken of the site where the package will be dropped - the package is a burger or, mainly, a coffee - but the drone is taking pictures of other back gardens as well. This was shown in the work. Someone out in their back garden should not have a company with a drone taking a photograph of them.”
“Ciara Bracken-Roche from Maynooth University spoke at the meeting. I also had a very good meeting with Professor Julia Powles, who is a professor of law and technology in Australia. She has written a lot about this and the impact that Google drones had there. There is a lot of questioning of this technology. Primarily, it is communities getting organised for themselves that has made the difference. I do not have time to go into it but Manna has been operating disgracefully in Dublin West. It has three bases and two of them did not have any planning permission. The rules do not seem to apply. In fact, it is quoted in the newspapers as saying the planning regulations had not caught up with it. The rules do not apply to it.”
“Everyone knows how hard it is to get people to a meeting and there were 250 people in the Crowne Plaza hotel, on a cold enough night, who were very concerned about the impact this was having. We all agree that drones can be used amazingly for medical issues, topography, geography and emergency situations such as delivering defibrillators. This is what they should primarily be used for. I am in favour of regulation where we outline the uses of drones. I do not think they should be used for commercial or fast-food delivery in highly built-up residential areas. I do not see that as being essential, not compared to the scale of the impact it is having on people. It is not about just opposing technology. The effect of persistent noise on people is very damaging to their health. We know this from all the studies. Dr.”
“If it impacts on a minority of people, that is enough and it should not be allowed to do this. There is one company, Manna, that has upped the ante and taken on Deliveroo. What about when other companies, such as Amazon or Google, start to use this? We will have an M50 in the sky. The only other country where this has happened and there has been a community response is Australia. The community in Bonython protested and saw off the drones. To make it clear, because it is a bit jaded to say some TDs do not like technology and we are Luddites, we do not just welcome technology for the sake of technology. It is about how technology impacts on people. A number of people in academia are very opposed to this. There was a public meeting that was attended by other TDs here.”
“The company had to have some level of consultation there. This was a turning point last summer. I will give my position on where we should go with this. The Bill is quite minimal. I support the provisions in it but it is far from dealing with the issue. We have had no debate on the impact of this very intrusive technology, which is completely and utterly wrong. It was allowed to happen by Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael in particular. There was no consent sought from the communities that had to endure it. A couple of comments have been made about the noise. It has been said that it is like the death of peace and quiet but this is not the case for everyone. I do not hear the noise as much as other residents would but it is not about taking a poll to see what the temperature is and going with that.”
“We have been the experimental lab in Dublin 15 for this technology. I thank the TDs from outside Dublin West and I will be absolutely frank. It was only when it was spoken about that this technology would be going into other areas that immediately people kicked up about it. We have been suffering this for a year and a half. It was introduced with no opposition. It was welcomed in by the Minister, Deputy Chambers, who is a TD for the area. Some people raised it at local council level, trying to get media attention on it. They put it on the council agenda. Deputy Gannon raised it in here as a Topical Issue one day and I raised it. Then Dundrum happened and 200 people showed up to a meeting there. Fair play to Dundrum; the people said to hang on a second and that they were not having it.”
“The idea that they had to be forced to wait is highly insulting. I want to mention the political aspect of this. The people who oppose the likes of this are from rural areas. It is actually rural women who suffer the most, particularly if they do not have access to GP services in their counties. Some are forced to travel to other counties. The right, the religious right and the far right are pushing back on rights we won in the 2000s and the 2010s. I ask that the Government consider this as being an absolutely necessary reform that we have not had in the seven years since we voted on the matter and to not be convinced by these individuals. The majority of people did not want barriers put in the way of women.”
“Periods are not often talked about in the Dáil, but the date of pregnancy is measured by a doctor under our law from the first day of a last period. It is not measured from the date of conception. Therefore, people have even less time. People may think 12 weeks is a long time, but up to nine weeks are measured. It is a very short time, and we are potentially adding another week and forcing people to travel, including victims of domestic violence and so on. The WHO, the Irish Family Planning Association, the O'Shea report and UN have all stated that the mandatory waiting periods should not have been introduced. They are not necessary. During the pandemic, we had telemedicine. There were no delays. Some 98% of people who went to a first appointment went ahead with termination at the second.”
“It is forcing women to go much later, not by three days but often a lot more. In a survey, Too Many Barriers, carried out by Dr. Lorraine Grimes, the majority of people reported that it was very negative for them to have a mandatory delay. They spoke about having to get a person to give them a lift to a second appointment and having to get time off work. They spoke about the stress and anxiety of being forced to wait longer and of having this hanging over them. There are many other responses I do not have time to speak about. Often, people are waiting a week for an appointment with a doctor. Some one in four people waited more than three days for a second appointment. This can add ten days to the timeline. I want to make something clear.”
“This provision was introduced at the last minute. The legislation was very dependent on getting the vote of Simon Coveney, who, I understand, was Tánaiste at the time, and the votes of some others in the ranks of Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. In March 2018, Mr. Coveney was quoted as saying that people apparently came up to him in shops and stated that there had to be barriers before the legislation went through. He said: Only after the protocol is certified ... I believe a pause period is appropriate at this juncture and expect Cabinet to consider between 48-72 hours, to ensure a fully considered decision. What happened was very much political. The country voted strongly on the matter. The people who went out to vote in numbers did not vote to put this barrier in place. I want to talk about some of the problems it is causing.”
“One can have a rhinoplasty procedure performed and there is no mandatory wait. The regret rate for rhinoplasty is 40%. We do not have any of these rules for other procedures. This affects women and people who can become pregnant. There is an idea that women are rash, emotional, cannot make decisions for themselves and have not fully thought things through and that by putting in this place this barrier they will suddenly decide not to go ahead with a termination. This does not recognise the amount of thought somebody has generally put into a decision before they even pick up a phone to make an appointment. It does not recognise the impact it is having on GP services. This was, essentially, a political decision at the time. I was active around the process leading to the legislation and referendum. It is something I campaigned on.”
“I move: That leave be granted to introduce a Bill entitled an Act to amend the Health (Regulation of Termination of Pregnancy) Act 2018 to abolish the 3 day waiting period for abortion on request. This Bill relates to the three-day waiting clause in the abortion legislation. I was approached by young women last year who raised the need for reform on this specific aspect of the legislation. I gave them a commitment that I would put forward a Bill on the matter. Termination of pregnancy is a health procedure that is extremely time sensitive. What was introduced is a mandatory 72-hour delay before a person can have a second appointment to access abortion. This clause does not apply to any other medical procedure that we have in law. One can buy Viagra over the counter – I would love to have a debate about that in the House.”
“We should have a Luas running from Broombridge to Blanchardstown centre, where, by the way, they have just introduced parking charges and all the buses are routed through there. There is no direct bus from Hollystown into the city centre. I have been approached by a woman who ends up walking on her own in the dark late at night trying to get to work in Dublin Port from the Tyrrelstown area. Again, it is ludicrously slow in terms of developing it. Those issues are real issues that people are facing in their lives.”
“I am not going to get a chance to bring up all the infrastructural needs of my constituency. There are 140,000 people. We have no light rail system. I will just mention one area which is the Tyrrelstown and Hollystown area. It is so symptomatic of the way developer-led planning happens in this country, which is one of the headings that is used in the strategy. Some 1,400 houses were recently added on in Hollystown, for example, but there is no direct bus route into the city centre. TDs outside Dublin may think we have a Minister there and we are laughing. Far from it. We have had Ministers in Dublin West and we have had taoisigh in Dublin West. We have been tripping over Ministers but we never get the investment we need in infrastructure.”
“My faith in humanity is restored by the ordinary Americans who are rooting and standing up for their neighbours and pushing Trump back. He has had to push back.”
“I have absolutely nothing to answer for in relation to protesting against dictators, including the Iranian dictator, against whom I have been on many protests, and including Putin - I have been outside that embassy more times than any Government members have. I do not need to be selective. The Taoiseach is selective about who is a dictator. He has imposed sanctions against Iran but nothing against Israel which has been genociding the people of Palestine for over two and a half years. Is the Taoiseach going on the Board of Peace? Is he so craven that he has not even got the spine to clearly state he would not take any part in such a board? He has had over a week to answer that question. The reality is there is a civil war, in effect, going on in cities in the US.”
“Stay inside." They whistle to defend and warn their neighbours. Children are screaming in detention camps, modern-day concentration camps for kids. There is a protest going on in one as we speak. US cities are in revolt against Trump. Which side is the Taoiseach on? Will he go and shake hands with the tyrant who is calling them domestic terrorists or will he show solidarity with the ordinary people of the US challenging this dictator?”
“What an insult to celebrate it with somebody who is terrorising migrants as we speak. There are many despots in the world but I would like the Taoiseach to focus on the one he is going to greet on St. Patrick's Day. Louis XIV said " L'État, c'est moi " - "The State is me"; Trump is saying " Le monde, c'est moi " - "The world is me". He has to be stopped. The Taoiseach was questioned on this last week and said, "bread on the table". Have he and Fine Gael led us to the point where our economic policy is so reliant on American FDI that we are in moral bankruptcy when it comes to these issues? The single biggest fear of American multinationals pulling out was the housing crisis that the Taoiseach has created - nothing else. Has the Taoiseach seen the videos from Minnesota? People shout across the streets, "They're coming.”
“He still has not even ruled out going on the Board of Peace for Palestine that Trump is proposing - a disgusting collection of war criminals aiming to turn Gaza into Vegas. Where does he stand on the unleashing of ICE, operating in the US as a modern Gestapo or as modern-day slave traders? I am sorry this is causing amusement. It is actually very serious. A new poll by Amárach yesterday showed the Taoiseach is out of sync with the majority of the Irish population. Some 47% do not want the leader of our country to go to the White House on our national holiday and give publicity to a dangerous demagogue, colonialist, racist and sexual predator, while 35% do. The Irish public is again ahead of the political establishment. They want the Taoiseach to show a moral backbone. St. Patrick's Day is particularly about the Irish migration experience.”
“There is a very famous poem, which I am sure the Taoiseach knows, by Pastor Martin Niemöller, "First They came". It begins: First they came for the communists And I did not speak out Because I was not a communist Then it says: I did not speak out Because I was not a Socialist Then it is a trade unionist, then a Jew. Of course, eventually there was nobody left to speak out. It is easily transferable to the Taoiseach's approach to the actions of the US President and the Trump regime. You could insert "Mexicans", "migrants", "Muslims" or "peaceful protestors" into any of those lines. Who must they come for before the Taoiseach will speak out? He has not spoken out about Trump's attack on Venezuela and the kidnapping of its leader or about the bombing of Iran.”
“This Bill is not the solution that people have asked for. It is not the solution that Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, which probably deals with more victims of sexual violence now than ever before, has called for. It is not the solution called for by those at the front line, including therapists or survivors, so the Minister needs to do a lot better.”
“Unless that imbalance is corrected, it will remain difficult. I reiterate that survivors have asked for a vote to be called on this Bill. I understand this is difficult because there are many provisions in it. Some Deputies may want to vote for some elements of it and not for others. However, it is important to send a message to the Government that there is anger and annoyance over the issues that have not been addressed. Therefore, I will be calling a vote at the end of this debate. We are also calling for action at local level. I see a Fine Gael TD here now, which is great, but nobody from Fine Gael has spoken. A couple of Members from Fianna Fáil have spoken. A process of education is still needed on this issue, particularly throughout the Government ranks. People are coming in to say all sorts of things.”
“It was found in a six-month pilot programme in England and Wales that one in four uses of pepper spray was inappropriate or unnecessary. This shows it will be used in the wrong places. I want to mention briefly the question of so-called "sex for rent". I agree that the proper term is "sexual exploitation" because of the housing crisis. I think I was one of the first TDs to raise this, not in the last Dáil but in the previous one. I was approached about a particular case. I welcome any law that will make things more difficult for perpetrators. I feel it would be very difficult for someone to take a case under any law because of the imbalance of power between landlords and tenants created by the Government’s failure to deal with the horrific housing crisis over the past 12 or 13 years.”
“How are judges supposed to become experts in analysing counselling notes and understanding self-blame, shame and everything else that could be used against victims? The same applies to solicitors and juries. The Minister needs to go completely back to the drawing board. I want to finish by mentioning some other issues that arise from this Bill, one being that of pepper spray in prisons. We heard testimony last week indicating that 150 prisoners were lying on mattresses in shared cells. Pepper spray is being introduced into that mix. We know from scientific data that if people have weaponry, they are likely to use it. Let us set up a proper prison system where people have space and so on. Many people are in prison because of the likes of a drug addiction, in respect of which they need healthcare rather than imprisonment.”
“There is fear of not being believed and there is shame. The lack of faith in the justice system is a major reason. The Minister could restore some faith by finding a way to put records out of reach. I am disappointed that the Minister has not come back with something more than he has come back with. People are not taking cases for many reasons. One of them is that the system is so traumatic and another is the use of counselling notes. I emphasise that therapy is not linear. You could say something one day and it could be counteracted by how you feel on another day. Judges are not experts in analysing therapy notes. Why should they be regarded as such? No offence, but many judges are not even receiving training on gender-based violence. It is not compulsory anyway.”
“This is not possible if you know something you say could potentially be used against you. The organisations that have said this law should not proceed as it currently stands are Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, the National Women’s Council of Ireland, the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy, the Psychological Society of Ireland, the Irish Council for Psychotherapy, Therapists Against Harm, Beyond Surviving, Éist, the Oireachtas justice committee, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women, and the Irish Association of Humanistic and Integrative Psychotherapists. I am sure there are many more. There has been a groundswell of opinion on the practice. People are disgusted when they hear this is happening. I direct the Minister again to the reasons sexual crime is not reported.”
“The Garda has also had a high number. Therefore, this is an important issue. I was going to talk to the Minister about other survivors and what they have said but I believe I have made the point about the damage done. I want to mention therapy briefly, because therapists are disgusted with this legislation as well. Dr. Niamh Ní Dhomhnaill, who is a survivor of rape and a chartered clinical psychologist, has campaigned widely in the past couple of years to get her professional body to come out against the practice of using counselling notes. She has stated that therapy can offer a space to make sense of the pain, confusion and stuckness that trauma creates in us, and also that it is supposed to be a place to explore in safety and without fear of repercussions.”
“There is a way to address this within the bounds of our Constitution. The Oireachtas can weigh up the conflict of rights. The Minister mentioned only the right to privacy, but people have other rights. He is restricting his consideration to the right to privacy. Is he telling me that the Irish Constitution states people can be degraded routinely or that victims of crime should be degraded daily in our courts? There are other rights, including rights to access justice, healing, therapy and healthcare. There are all sorts of things. There are competing rights and the Oireachtas could have drafted a law that would have made it very clear where the balance should lie. I will not have time to go into everything. We know the figures for gender-based violence are off the charts. Dublin Rape Crisis Centre has the highest number of calls.”
“I will give a couple of examples. We have privilege for the legal profession, which means there is privilege between lawyers and their clients. We have sacerdotal privilege, which means priests are not compelled to go in front of a trial and outline what was said to them in the confessional. There is Cabinet confidentiality. Journalists’ sources are confidential. I realise that a person might not have full privilege, but there is full or partial privilege in all of these cases. There is also parliamentary privilege. I can stand up today and say all sorts of things but I cannot be called to court over them. There is also spousal privilege. I am sure the Minister has a huge legal brain, so he can find a way to address this. He just has not been bothered enough. I do not believe it is bothering him as much as it should be.”
“It is purely to find a nugget that can be used to undermine a person's character and to assassinate the character of the victim who is the complainant. That is all it is. I say it is misogynistic because it is mainly women, but I was approached by a man who thanked me for raising concerns about the Bill because his notes had been accessed. This can happen to men. It can happen to child victims of sexual abuse as well. I wanted to stress that because I wonder about what he has come back to the House with. The easiest thing to do was to revert back and take away the waiver. It is not enough. I want to quickly make a few points on what the Minister could do. There are a couple of ways around this. The Minister could, for example, make these counselling notes privileged. We have loads of privilege in our society and our legal system.”