John O'Donoghue
Question:4 Mr. O'Donoghue asked the Minister for Justice whether she intends to introduce legislation to reform and modernise the system of collection of fines. [10430/95]
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Collection of Fines.
I am currently reviewing the whole question of the payment of fines and debts. My aim, in line with the commitment in the Policy agreement, A Government of Renewal, is to ensure that the system of collection of fines and debts is as effective as possible, while at the same time continuing to ensure that the sanction of imprisonment is used only as a last resort.
There are already, of course, safeguards in place so as to avoid the possibility of unnecessary imprisonment. At present, courts must, when imposing a fine, take into account the means of the offender. In the case of refusal to obey a court order to pay a debt, the court may only commit the debtor to prison where it is satisfied that the refusal is wilful and not merely a result of inability to pay.
I am considering whether a system could be devised which would enhance the efficient and effective collection of fines and debts while at the same time providing a practical and realistic method of payment for offenders and debtors. I have in mind a system of attachment of income, where a court could order fines or debts to be deducted from a person's income. This would ensure the collection of the amounts due in a way which would be manageable for the offender and debtor and which would avoid consideration of the option of imprisonment.
I am also looking at the related question of payment of fines by instalment. There is a certain overlap between this and an attachment of income scheme which is a type of payment by instalment. As not everyone who could benefit from paying by instalment has an attachable income, the possibility of a parallel system of payment by instalment is also under review.
The various options I am considering would require legislation. I can assure the House that, when I have concluded my examination of all of the issues involved, I will waste no time in bringing before it any proposals for legislative change which I and the Government believe are desirable.
I welcome the Minister's announcement that she is considering the introduction of a system of payment by instalments and attachment of earnings. Does she accept that a considerable amount of Garda time and resources are wasted in trying to collect fines for minor offences and that the time has come for the introduction of a system of on-the-spot fines for such offences?
The Garda spend a great deal of time collecting fines but these are part of the judicial system and they are imposed on people who do not have car tax, car insurance etc. There is an onus on the Garda to implement the wishes of the courts by ensuring the fines are paid.
In a number of instances on-the-spot fines can be imposed but they cannot be imposed for traffic offences. I will consider this system during my review of how best to deal with fines, the time it takes to collect them and the number of people who evade the payment of fines imposed on them by the courts.
Given that approximately 6,000 petitions are sent to the Department of Justice annually, what does the Minister intend to do about the petitions which were being processed but not finalised prior to the Geoghegan judgment and the petitions which have been received since that judgment?
Mr. Justice Geoghegan's judgment did not do away with the system of petitions but it clearly indicated that it should be implemented in the way proposed by the legislators in the 1950s, that is sparingly and only in very special circumstances. I have been using that method since I took up office, which was prior to Mr. Justice Geoghegan's decision, and I will continue to do so. In the letters I have written since the judgment I have indicated that my decisions will take into account Mr. Justice Geoghegan's judgment and that the granting of a petition is without prejudice to the powers or rights of the Garda to implement a fine if they so wish; that the opening of a petition does not automatically stop the Garda from carrying out that duty. I will continue to implement the system in the most sparing and thoughtful way possible and I will seek additional information from the Garda in the reports they send to me on the petitions.
I wish to correct a misconception which may arise from the Minister's reply, that the former Minister for Justice did not exercise the power sparingly. Mr. Justice Geoghegan stated that the acts were ultra vires. Previous Ministers for Justice, and not just Deputy Geoghegan Quinn——
Statements at Question Time are not in order.
Does the Minister intend to vary penalties as opposed to reducing them? In other words, will she preside over a system under which people will be given more time to pay fines and does she intend to publish any variation orders in Iris Oifigiúil?
I previously answered a more substantial question on petitions. This question does not relate to petitions and I do not have the information I gave on the last occasion. Suffice to say that when one is considering a petition one has the option to ignore it an send it back, mitigate the fine in some way or allow additional time for payment. All those options are available to me when considering a petition. In my reply to the previous question I gave a list of the fines I had handled since I took office. In approximately 70 per cent of cases I sent back the petitions, in a smaller percentage of cases I gave people additional time to pay and in a few cases I mitigated the fine. As the person is not legally represented in court, the court is not always in a position to know his or her income or circumstances when a decision is being handed down. I assure the Deputy that I was not in any way making a judgment on any previous Minister, that is a matter for somebody else. This arose during the term of office of the previous Minister and the judge made a judgment on four specific cases she had dealt with. The judge referred to that Minister and I am not making any case for her or any other Minister. I will implement the system in a sparing and caring way.