Plans to set up a new agency to tackle domestic, sexual and gender-based violence (DSGBV) are expected to be considered by Cabinet on Tuesday.
The Irish Times understands that Minister for Justice Simon Harris is to bring the general scheme, or heads, of the legislation for the new agency to the meeting. The plans to set up the new agency are part of the Government’s zero-tolerance strategy on DSGBV.
The strategy was first set out by on-leave Minister for Justice Helen McEntee in June last year.
Protection
Mr Harris has been serving as Minister for Justice during Ms McEntee’s maternity leave.
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When the strategy was announced then-taoiseach Micheál Martin said that the actions to protect vulnerable people under the strategy would be spearheaded by the agency which is due to be established by January 1st, 2024.
It is intended that it will deliver services for victims including the provision of accommodation, helplines and other supports. The agency is also to take the lead on awareness-raising campaigns to reduce the incidence of DSGBV and ensure that support can be accessed by victims.
It is to take charge of ongoing research to inform policy development and the agency will report to the Minister for Justice.
Separately, Ministers are also to be updated on proposals to split the role of chief scientific adviser from the position of director general of Science Foundation Ireland.
Science
The positions were merged more than a decade ago.
Speaking in late 2021 ahead of a public consultation process on what science advice structures are the best model for the Republic, Mr Harris — Minister for Science — said: “We are facing significant challenges as a society and like Covid-19, it will be science that will help steer us through those obstacles. The Government now has an opportunity to consider the role of science in our decision-making processes and how it affects our policy responses.”
In another item on the agenda, Minister for Culture Catherine Martin is expected to bring the programme for the final year of the Decade of Centenaries to Tuesday’s meeting.
