Number of Kildare sex offenders in jail has more than doubled in 20 years - MEP

Kildare has recorded a 134% rise in rapes and sexual assaults over the past two decades, prompting Ireland South MEP Cynthia Ní Mhurchú to call for immediate action on how Ireland deals with sexual offenders.

The figures, released by the CSO and obtained by Ní Mhurchú, show that 124 cases of rape and sexual assault were recorded in Kildare in 2024, up from just 53 in 2003.

“This is not just a statistic. It reflects a serious and growing threat to women’s safety in Kildare and across the country,” said Ní Mhurchú, a Carlow native and former family law barrister. “We need to treat this like the emergency it is.”

Her comments come alongside new data released to her under FOI, showing that 800 sex offenders were in Irish prisons as of May 31st, costing the State almost €80 million a year. The number of jailed offenders has surged by 16% since 2024, and by over 360% since 2018.

Ní Mhurchú has criticised the failure to rehabilitate sex offenders in prison. The Building Better Lives programme – once the State’s main treatment scheme – was scrapped in late 2024, with only six offenders completing it that year.

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The MEP is now calling for a full review of sentencing, better training for judges, more support for victims, and an investigation into why sexual violence has soared in every Garda division.

“Our response has not kept pace with the crisis,” she said. “Communities in Kildare and beyond deserve better. Victims deserve better.”

Ní Mhurchú said she would request an urgent meeting with Justice Minister Jim O’Callaghan to push for what she called “real, focused change on violence against women.”