Government must use recess to plan for Safe Fund in Budget 2027
Government must use recess to plan for Safe Fund in Budget 2027 - The Labour Party
- Labour Women launched the campaign for a Safe Fund in May 2026, after a motion on the initiative was passed at their last Annual Conference.
- The €3m fund would support victim survivors of domestic abuse (€1m per year over three years).
- The proposal includes an annual review mechanism to assess adequacy and impact and to ensure those accessing the fund are not retraumatised in the process of drawing down funds.
Today, 21st July 2026, Labour Women and members of the Parliamentary Labour Party met with Sarah Benson of Women’s Aid to progress talks on Labour Women’s campaign for establishment of a €3 million, non-meanstested Safe Fund.
The fund would provide direct financial support to those in domestic violence situations when they need it most, whether that is to leave an abusive home or to meet urgent essential costs safely.
Chairperson of Labour Women Hannah Deasy said:
“We know that financial insecurity and the housing crisis are trapping many victims in abusive homes because they simply cannot afford to leave. Frontline organisations, such as Women’s Aid, have repeatedly warned that a lack of immediate financial support is preventing women from escaping dangerous situations.
“It was in that context that, today, Labour Women sought a meeting with Women’s Aid to brief them on our work to ensure the Safe Fund is included in Budget 2027, and to hear from them as to best practice for supplying emergency support for women and their children who are trapped in family violence situations.
“Women’s Aid supplied us with powerful and distressing testimony from women who had availed of their emergency funding to escape a dangerous home during the Covid-19 pandemic. Those heartbreaking stories underscore the importance of those funds being provided in a timely manner. Indeed, recent news of, yet more, women being murdered by their intimate partners reminds us of the urgency of providing financial support to those fleeing domestic violence.
“Existing supports are too slow, too complex, and too difficult to access in moments of trauma. We know from frontline services that financial insecurity is one of the biggest barriers preventing people from escaping abuse. This fund would cut through that, delivering fast, flexible support through trusted services.
“The Safe Fund is about dignity, trust and immediate support. It recognises that at the point of crisis, people need access to money quickly, without barriers, without stigma, and without delay.”
Labour Party Leader Ivana Bacik TD, who chaired today’s meeting, said:
“Freedom from violence should not be a luxury. No woman should ever have to choose between violence and destitution. No victim of domestic violence should have to remain in danger because they cannot afford to leave.
“The rise in domestic abuse is a national emergency, and it must be treated as such. The establishment of a publicly resourced Safe Fund should be part of a strengthened national response to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. This would be a step in the right direction to provide frontline support to women who are experiencing domestic violence.
“I have raised Labour Women’s campaign with the Taoiseach in the Dáil on several occasions now. It is a practical and affordable Budget proposal. The Government have the opportunity to deliver the measure through Budget 2027. If even one woman or child is protected from violence because they finally have the means to leave, it will have been worth it. Labour Women and the Labour Party will continue to campaign on this potentially life-saving initiative to ensure that it forms part of October’s Budget package, and we urge the Government to respond positively to our important call.”