While we welcome the Government's decision to set up a statutory agency to oversee the State's response to domestic abuse, a number of issues flow from that, in particular the issue of maintenance and the difficulty people have in accessing maintenance through the current courts system, particularly when the defaulting party refuses to pay, where often abused spouses who live in refuges and shelters find themselves having to access the court system on a continual basis. Will this agency be given the power to step in and represent those people, particularly the most vulnerable among them, in relation to seeking maintenance?

The specific functions and objectives of the agency have yet to be determined. The overall objective is to co-ordinate much more effectively services and policy in relation to domestic violence, sexual violence and gender-based violence. It is felt that pulling the different strands together under one agency is the best way to go. Prioritising that will be policy, the wraparound services from Tusla and a more direct approach to building proper state-of-the-art centres and refuges. The point the Deputy raises is very interesting. As I understand it, the Department of Social Protection currently has a key role in that regard. I will talk with the Minister, Deputy McEntee, on the issue and ask her to pursue it further.