The Citizens Assembly has heard a number of submissions to address what has been described as an epidemic of gender-based violence.
Among them were calls for a single authority to deal with gender-based violence, a victims commissioner and a government minister to oversee policy in this area.
The Head of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, Noeline Blackwell, said that there is currently no body, no person or office dealing with what she described as the widespread prevalence of sexual violence in Ireland . Therefore, as a consequence, there are delays in bringing this epidemic under control, she said. There are delays in reducing the size of the problem. There are delays in increasing safety, in increasing equality and we re also likely to be wasting public resources.