The number of women murdered and killed in Ireland is “not going in the right direction,” the Taoiseach has said.
Micheál Martin was responding during Leaders’ Questions after Ivana Bacik said the number of women violently killed so far in 2026 had overtaken the figure for the whole of last year, reports Breaking News.
The Labour leader raised the deaths of two women, Jamey Carney and Adina Raluca Constantin, in the last week in the Dáil.
“It’s become a cliché to describe violence against women as an epidemic and fatal violence against women as femicide, but that’s the reality,” she said, reports Breaking News.
Responding, Mr Martin said: “The numbers are not going in the right direction in terms of the continued violence and extreme violence that’s occurring, so there’s a societal response required.”
Bacik quoted a figure showing almost 90% of women murdered in Ireland were killed by a man known to them, adding “domestic violence kills,” reports Breaking News.
She said the charity Women’s Aid says the housing crisis is “trapping women and children in violent homes.”
“They simply cannot afford to leave, and they have nowhere to go. Their abusers know this,” she said, reports Breaking News.
She said a €3 million safe fund, administered by the charity, is needed “to provide fast financial support for those who need an escape route.”
Martin said “broadly speaking” the Government is “supportive of any measure that will help women who are victims of continuing domestic violence,” reports Breaking News.
He said he would talk to ministers about the proposal.
He added that in his view, every local authority housing allocation should have “a reserve held to facilitate women fleeing domestic violence,” reports Breaking News.
He said he favoured “as broad a degree of flexibility as possible to facilitate women who are under the constant threat of either coercive control or violence in any shape or form that might take,” reports Breaking News.
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