I want to address the issue of civil legal aid. It is an issue that deeply impacts women experiencing domestic violence. Two weeks ago, Women's Aid painted for the justice committee a stark picture of the barriers to justice for survivors of domestic violence because of the long-term systemic failure to resource the Legal Aid Board. Legal aid should, in theory, remove barriers for accessing justice, but it does not work like that in practice in Ireland. In 2024, FLAC answered over 11,000 queries, of which 500 were for domestic violence cases. Shockingly, it had the capacity to deal with only about 21% of those queries for support.

Civil legal aid is not an abstract administrative scheme. It is the bridge between vulnerability and justice. Access to justice must be available to everyone whether they have the ability to pay or not, particularly in contexts of domestic violence. For survivors, fear of the unknown, of an alien court system, about where she might live, about whether she will have custody of her children and about financial uncertainty are all challenges that affect people's access to justice. Legal aid should be a system that helps women to escape violence, to secure safety for their children, to protect their home and to rebuild their lives but today the system is totally overwhelmed, under-resourced and unable to meet the demand. Waiting lists are long and the financial thresholds are rigid. Those who earn more than €18,000 per year do not qualify for legal aid. As a result, far too many women are left navigating complex legal proceedings alone. When we apply a gendered lens, this failure becomes stark because women are disproportionately applicants for civil legal aid in family law and domestic violence cases. They are the ones seeking protection orders, custody arrangements, maintenance and safe housing. When the system does not work, it is women and children who suffer first.

The financial means test in particular is failing survivors of domestic violence. A woman who is fleeing abuse might share her income and assets with her abuser. That is a technicality and it will count in terms of the threshold for accessing legal aid support. However, we know that those assets and bank accounts are often used as tools of coercive control. On paper, a woman might be ineligible but in actual reality she has no safe access to those resources for legal support. She might not even have knowledge of where to look to find out the current family financial picture.

Access to justice requires proper resourcing. Legal aid centres must be adequately funded and staffed to meet demand. Practitioners working on family law and domestic violence cases must receive specialised training in coercive control and trauma-informed practice. Critically, mediation should never be required when domestic violence is present because it risks retraumatisation and reinforces power imbalances. Mediation is often used in these cases but that goes completely against any understanding of trauma-informed responses. Access to justice is a cornerstone of equality and I ask for a full debate on civil legal aid reform because it is a significant barrier for women and children in upholding their right to safety and justice.

Finally, I also want to lend my voice to those requesting condemnation from the Irish Government of those engaging in breaches of international law. No matter what country is doing it, we have to call it out in every single instance.