Every witness report deserves to be assessed on its evidence.
When a witness reports sexual misconduct at an Irish university, the report can be turned away without anyone looking at the evidence. We are asking universities and government to review these policies so each report is decided case by case.
What we are asking for
- 01
Assess every witness report
When a witness reports sexual misconduct, someone with authority should assess it and decide whether to act. That decision should weigh, at a minimum, the evidence the witness provides, the risk to other students and staff, and any power the person reported holds over students. A report should never be closed only because the person affected has not made a complaint of their own, and that person should never be required to take part.
- 02
Publish the rule
Each university should state in its published policy who a witness reports to, who makes the decision and what it is based on, for reports about staff as well as students. The witness should be told whether the report is being taken forward.
- 03
Set a national minimum standard
Government and the Higher Education Authority should build a minimum standard for witness reports into the revised national framework recommended by the Expert Group in November 2025.
The picture today
34%
of female students who answered the 2021 national survey said they had experienced non-consensual vaginal penetration through coercion, incapacitation, force or threat of force.
Higher Education Authority, 2022 (opens in a new tab)12%
of students who reported an incident anonymously through Speak Out also made a formal complaint to their institution.
Speak Out National Report, 2022 to 2024 (opens in a new tab)4%
of those students made a complaint to An Garda Síochána.
Speak Out National Report, 2022 to 2024 (opens in a new tab)4
Oireachtas committee hearings on sexual violence and harassment policies in higher education between June and September 2026.
Houses of the Oireachtas (opens in a new tab)
About these figures: the 2021 survey was answered by 7,901 students, about 3.2 per cent of those invited, so it describes the people who responded. The Speak Out figures cover 1 September 2022 to 31 August 2024 and include bullying and harassment as well as sexual misconduct.
What you can do
Ask the people who set these policies to review them. It takes a few minutes to write to your TDs, senators, the Higher Education Authority, your local university or the media, and we have gathered the links you need.
See how to take actionJournalists and researchers: key facts, sources and contact details for interviews. Press information