Martin Cullen
Question:15 Mr. Cullen asked the Minister for Justice if, in view of the serious increase in crime, she will ensure that substantially increased funding is made available to the Irish Association for Victim Support.
Ceisteanna-Questions. Oral Answers. - Irish Association for Victim Support.
My Department provides an annual grant-in-aid to the Irish Association for Victim Support, a voluntary body which provides practical and emotional support to victims of crime.
The grant-in-aid to the association was increased in each of the years 1991, 1992 and 1993, to a point where the funding to be provided in 1993 will be more than double the amount provided in 1990.
The possibility of further increasing the funding for the association is kept under constant review in the Department of Justice. However, Deputies will be aware of the many competing demands that there are for the limited financial resources available.
I should also like to inform the House that my Department is working closely with the IAVS and that assistance other than the grant-in-aid has been provided. In this regard, I would refer the Deputy to the written reply to Deputy Callely yesterday which outlined the progress made in providing a range of support services for victims of crime over and above a grant-in-aid.
Will the Minister of State specify what he means by "the funding to be provided in 1993 will be more than double the amount provided in 1990?" I know that in 1992 they received £15,000. Does the Minister agree that this was an insult, given the increase in crime in recent years and the invaluable work done by the association? Has the attention of the Minister of State been drawn to the very excellent paper delivered by Anne Meade, Secretary of the Irish Association for Victim Support — which the Minister has kindly sent us — at the recent conference arranged by the former Minister in Dublin Castle. As a commitment to the many people who have been victims of crime in our society can the Minister assure us that there will be a substantial increase, both in the financial and staff resources made available to the association — I am thinking of advisory services, rental of premises, the holding of conferences and such matters as the association require help with.
I take this opportunity to recognise the tremendous work that has been done by the association on a voluntary basis. With regard to Deputy Harney's question about the doubling of recources, the figure for 1987, 1988, 1989 and 1990 remained static at £8,000 but was increased to £12,000 in 1991 and to $15,000 in 1992. In relation to Deputy Harney's statement about an insult——
A sum of £15,000 is appalling.
——I should say that the association sought an increase to £18,000 in 1993 and I am exceedingly optimistic that their request will meet a positive response.
As I said in my reply to Deputy Callely yesterday, there is a wide range of services available to the association over and above grant-in-aid— it is not only a question of grant-in-aid. I would point out that the association has drawn up a charter for victims of crime and has been making representations to the Department of Justice since its foundation in 1986. The representations and suggestions made to us have been reflected in much of the legislation the Department produced since the association was set up in 1986. I am aware of the contents of the paper to which the Deputy referred and I will be in consultation with the Minister and the association about it.
Would the Minister of State agree that we need to reorientate our system of criminal justice to render it a victim orientated system to a far greater extent than is the case at present? Would the Minister of State agree that the Government should put in place a charter for the victims of crime and that it should not be left to a voluntary group in the context of the work they are doing? The charter for the victims of crime that has been prepared by the Irish Association for the Victim Support is the type of charter that should be sponsored by Government and put in place. Would the Minister of State agree that this organisation should be allocated greater resources?
The Deputy will be aware of the current financial position of the country and the competing demands for resources. There is no voluntary organisation under the aegis of any Department that we would not like to fund to a greater degree than it is being funded at present. Of course we would like to give more resources to every voluntary organisation that is doing such tremendous work. We are in constant contact with the association and it is in contact with us. We are aware of its demands and requirements and we will continue to fund and support the association to the greatest extent possible.
Would the Minister of State agree that, if the courts made greater use of fines he would have a fund at his disposal that would allow for the reintroduction of the pain and suffering provisions in compensation claims for victims? Would he agree that the conditions attaching to grants from his Department are so strict that it would not be possible for the association to seek more and that the Department needs to widen the conditions under which grants are paid? The Department should consider giving core funding to this association who do such extraordinary work on a voluntary basis.
The whole question of the indexation of fines is under consideration. We will bring forward legislation to deal with this and in the context of that legislation I will bear in mind what the Deputy said.