Irish Examiner view: We could emulate Spain in tackling violence against women

Micheál Martin's acknowledgement that Ireland is not doing enough to tackle violence against women is welcome. But the real test is whether those words now become action

Violence against women is often discussed as though it were an unavoidable feature of modern society. Spain provides perhaps the clearest example of upending this outlook. Picture: iStock

As the country continues to absorb the shock of the violent death of Jamey Carney in Killarney, the Taoiseach’s acknowledgement that Ireland is not doing enough to tackle violence against women is both welcome and necessary.

It is a truth that has been repeated by campaigners, victims’ families, and frontline organisations for years.

The real test, however, is whether those words now become action. That challenge is sharpened by the publication yesterday of the Oireachtas committee’s report on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. There will be recommendations, many of them sensible and overdue. We have become adept at producing strategies, reports, and action plans. The question that follows every tragedy is whether this time will be different.

Violence against women is often discussed as though it were an unavoidable feature of modern society, something to be mitigated rather than fundamentally challenged. Other countries suggest otherwise. Spain provides perhaps the clearest example. 

Following the horrific murder of Ana Orantes, who was killed by her former husband in 1997 just days after speaking publicly about decades of abuse, Spanish society reached a point where outrage gave way to reform.

In 2004, Spain enacted one of Europe’s most comprehensive laws addressing gender-based violence. It established specialist courts, dedicated prosecutors, enhanced victim protections, co-ordinated healthcare and policing responses, mandatory professional training, and sustained public awareness campaigns. None of this eliminated violence against women overnight. No serious policymaker ever claimed it would. But it represented something profoundly important: An acceptance that gender-based violence is not simply a criminal justice issue, but a societal one requiring a co-ordinated, long-term response.

Ireland has made progress. Refuge provision has expanded. Domestic violence legislation has strengthened. Public awareness has improved. Yet every new tragedy reminds us that our response remains fragmented. Victims still encounter too many barriers. 

Services remain overstretched. Prevention too often loses out to crisis management.

The Taoiseach was right to say that no single measure will solve this problem. Equally, however, no government can continue to describe violence against women as a national priority without matching that language with sustained political urgency. Yesterday’s committee report should not become another worthy publication briefly debated before disappearing into official archives. Every recommendation should carry an implementation timeline, measurable targets, and clear accountability. If additional funding is required, it should be provided. If agencies require greater powers or better co-ordination, that should happen without delay.

Societies are ultimately judged less by the speeches they make than by the systems they build. The murder of Jamey Carney has once again forced us to confront a reality it would rather not face. The Taoiseach’s comments acknowledge that reality. The Oireachtas report offers an opportunity to respond to it. Now comes the difficult part — replacing expressions of sympathy with evidence that the State has learned enough to ensure that fewer families ever have to endure such grief again.

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CAST is a positive start

Innovation is an easy word to invoke in mental healthcare. Delivering it consistently is harder. 

That is why the findings from researchers at the University of Limerick on the Community Access Support Team deserve close attention.

Their evaluation suggests the initiative can produce substantial benefits for both the health service and An Garda Síochána, reducing unnecessary demand while ensuring vulnerable people receive more appropriate clinical support. This is precisely the sort of evidence policymakers should be looking for.

For too long, the health system, particularly in the area of mental health, has struggled to move successful pilot projects into permanent practice. Good ideas emerge, demonstrate promise, and then become trapped in a cycle of short-term funding, repeated evaluations, and administrative caution. In the meantime, emergency departments remain overcrowded, frontline services remain under pressure, and vulnerable people continue to fall between institutional gaps.

The Community Access Support Team appears to offer a different path. By bringing clinical expertise into situations that might otherwise become policing matters, it delivers better outcomes for individuals while making more efficient use of public resources. That is not simply compassionate policy; it is sensible public administration.

The UL researchers rightly caution that sustained investment and expanded clinical capacity will be necessary if those benefits are to be fully realised. That should not be viewed as an obstacle, but as an opportunity. Healthcare reform is often discussed in terms of billion-euro budgets and large-scale restructuring. Sometimes meaningful change begins with smaller innovations that demonstrably work.

If the evidence supports wider rollout, the Government should act upon it. In a health service too often criticised for resisting change, this is one example where evidence points clearly towards expansion rather than hesitation.

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The late Bonnie Tyler

There was nothing understated about Bonnie Tyler, and that was precisely the point. Her unmistakable voice and soaring power ballads belonged to a period when popular music embraced spectacle without embarrassment. Songs such as Total Eclipse of the Heart and Holding Out for a Hero were written to fill arenas, dominate radio playlists, and become the soundtrack to countless lives.

In an age increasingly shaped by streaming algorithms and fleeting online trends, Tyler’s music reminds us of a time when artists chased timelessness rather than virality. 

The songs were dramatic, heartfelt, and unapologetically grand. Many performers enjoy chart success. Far fewer create music that remains instantly recognisable decades later, crossing generations without losing its emotional force. 

Tyler’s remarkable voice ensured she did exactly that, leaving behind not simply a catalogue of hits, but memories shared across dancefloors, weddings, car journeys, and family homes.