Member's statement: Violence Against Women
Member's statement by Mr Gerry Carroll on .
- MLA
- Mr Gerry Carroll
- Party at the time
- People Before Profit Alliance
- Date
- 15 October 2024
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Violence Against Women
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 4592494
Read the official Assembly record
Text
I raise the tragic killing of Mary Ward, who was brutally killed in south Belfast around two weeks ago. Mary was originally from west Belfast, and the community there and across the city are deeply horrified by the killing of that young woman. I publicly extend my deepest sympathy to the family, with whom I have been in communication. Tragically, Mary was not the only woman killed in recent weeks; if reports from yesterday's debate are correct, probably five women have been killed in the past six weeks. Every one of those women had a family, a community and a story to tell, but they were killed and taken far too soon. I publicly extend my heartfelt sympathies to all families who are experiencing something unimaginable but, unfortunately, all too frequent. The society in which we live has a problem with misogyny. It has a deep problem with violence against women, who often do not feel safe in their own home. That is completely unacceptable and tragic. The response from this institution to violence against women has not been strong enough. We need more than condemnation. Condemnation is important, but we need more. We need proper funding for organisations like Women's Aid and an increase in the availability of women's refuges and safe places where people can go if they are at risk of violence. Crucially, we also need financial support and a means for women and others to escape violence and partners or ex-partners who target them. For financial reasons, women are not able to simply get up and leave. Those issues need to be addressed alongside the disgraceful fact that intimidation points are still not awarded to women who are victims of domestic violence. That is completely unforgivable, and it needs to change as a matter of urgency. I call on the Communities Minister to do that. Somebody could be a victim of domestic violence two, three, four or five-plus times and still not get intimidation points because the person who carried it out was not a member of a paramilitary organisation. Alongside that, we need to see tailored housing for victims and survivors of domestic abuse. Those issues need to be addressed. If they are not, we will probably come back to this unfortunate and tragic issue time and again.
383 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
Assessment
Jev’s structured answers met the documented threshold for “not flagged”.
- Overall probability that the activity is being used to promote, exploit or escalate an identity-based controversy: 0.06 (flagging needs at least 0.70; at or below 0.30 is not flagged).
- None of the five culture-war criteria was met (each was below 0.60).
- Assessed as legitimate policy scrutiny (0.94).
- No identity-based framing was identified (0.82).
- Subject area: Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups.
- The overall probability was at or below the not-flagging threshold.
This is an AI-generated assessment of the text, made against published criteria. It is not a finding of fact about the MLA or their intentions. The Assembly record itself is the fact.
Jev’s structured answers
| Question | Probability | Met? |
|---|---|---|
| Identity framing | 0.09 | No |
| Sectarian or communal antagonism | 0.03 | No |
| Cultural grievance politics | 0.02 | No |
| Dog-whistle messaging | 0.04 | No |
| Controversy escalation | 0.04 | No |
| Legitimate policy scrutiny | 0.94 | Yes |
| Overall judgement | 0.06 | At or below not-flagging threshold |
| Option | Probability |
|---|---|
| No identity-based framing (chosen) | 0.82 |
| Reports or questions it | 0.00 |
| Criticises or condemns it | 0.18 |
| Adopts it | 0.00 |
| Subject | Probability |
|---|---|
| Sexism, misogyny, ageism and other equality groups | 0.80 |
| Gender, sexuality, abortion and related social issues | 0.20 |
| No identity-related subject | 0.00 |
| Flags, emblems, symbols, names and memorials | 0.00 |
| Parades, bonfires and commemorations | 0.00 |
Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:26 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.
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