Vol. 454 No. 2
8 Mr. E. Byrne asked the Minister for Justice the average length of custodial sentence imposed for crimes in the most recent year for which figures are available; the average length of time actually served in custody; her views on public concern at the prospect of criminals, particularly those who have committed violent crimes, being released before their sentence has been completed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [10364/95]
The average length of custodial sentence imposed for crimes in 1992, the latest year for which statistics are available, was approximately 11 months. Statistics are not readily available which would show the relationship between temporary releases and the length of sentences served. Such statistics could be compiled only through an examination of the individual records of each offender and this would involve the expenditure of a disproportionate amount of staff time.
Temporary release may be granted by the Minister for Justice under the provisions of the Criminal Justice Act, 1960. Before granting temporary release the Minister has regard to a number of factors. These include the circumstances of the offence, the length of sentence imposed by the court, the length of time served, behaviour while in custody, the previous record of the offender and whether the granting of temporary release would be likely to pose a threat to the community.
A system of review meetings is operated at all the prisons and this enables the views of the various agencies dealing with an offender, such as prison staff, chaplains and the probation and welfare service, to be fully taken into account.
If temporary release is granted it is always subject to conditions. In all cases there is the condition that the person released must be of good behaviour. Other conditions could include supervision by the probation and welfare service, reporting at regular intervals to a Garda station, etc. Temporary release automatically ends if any conditions are breached in which event the individual concerned can be immediately returned to custody without warrant or without any court proceedings.
Temporary release arrangements are in effect our system of parole which is a feature of prison systems worldwide. Paroles are an important vehicle for reintegrating an offender into the community in a planned way. While due regard must be had to any risk which a particular release might pose, the generally accepted view is that the risk to the community would be even greater if, in certain cases, attempts at planned reintegration of offenders were not made since they must return to the community, anyway, on the expiry of their sentence.
For the avoidance of any doubt on the matter, I am not suggesting that the temporary release arrangement now in place cannot be improved on. The Deputy will probably be aware that the five year plan for the management of offenders, published by my Department a year ago freely acknowledged — at chapter 5 of the document — that certain changes were desirable and would be implemented. Implementation of these plans is now under way, in consultation with all the relevant interests involved.
I am sure the Minister is aware of the report on "The Gay Byrne Show" yesterday about a man serving a long custodial sentence for manslaughter who was allowed attend the funeral of the person known as, "the General". While I do not doubt the Minister's wisdom or sincerity, does she agree it is difficult for politicians to convince constituents that there is a proper prison regime in place when people sentenced to a term in prison do not serve the full term? Is she aware that at almost every Neighbourhood Watch meeting people cite chapter and verse about individuals given long custodial sentences being allowed out in a short time? How can we resolve this difficulty? Does the revolving door syndrome and the temporary release system simply facilitate prison overcrowding? Does it act as a vent for an otherwise explosive scenario?
The tempory release system is used for a number of reasons, not least to deal with overcrowding in prisons. There are approximately 2,200 people in prisons at any one time and I am sure Members will not be surprised to hear that a number of them are released before completing their sentences. For that reason proposals are in place to increase the number of prison places. Temporary release is also granted for humanitarian reasons, but I do not know the circumstances under which the person about whom the Deputy spoke was released to attend a funeral. Temporary release is frequently granted to prisoners, even those serving long term sentences, to attend funerals or visit sick relatives. The prison authorities receive hundreds of requests from prisoners every month for temporary release but many of them are refused. On entering prison almost all prisoners apply for temporary release to visit people outside, but such release is not granted as freely as people believe. Each case is examined separately.
I cannot envisage a time when a Minister for Justice will abolish the temporary release system, but I hope I can eliminate the element of the system that allows temporary release for no reason other than to provide a prison space for another criminal. I would like to introduce a system under which prisoners would serve the full term of their sentence but, unfortunately, because of the number of prison spaces available that is not practical at present.
It is farcical that people are sent to jail for non-payment of fines of, say, £25 at a time when we operate a revolving door syndrome. Having regard to the recent talk about changing our bail laws and the right to silence — changing the system to provide for more people going to jail — would the Minister agree to put her resources in one basket and provide a prison network, run by prison authorities, under which those who fail to pay meagre fines would be put on community service work and hardened criminals sent to jail? It is unacceptable that hardened criminals are allowed back on the streets, through the revolving door syndrome, having served only a few months of what was a substantial prison sentence.
The Deputy is correct, there is a need for more prison places and I propose to provide them. The prison system and the question of dealing with offenders is not as simple as the Deputy suggests. It is a myth to imply that our prisons are full of people who have not paid fines of, say, £25. Figures indicate that at any time approximately 0.2 per cent of our prison population is made up of people who have not paid a fine or a debt. While I was very unhappy about the recent high profile case in this regard, such people do not normally go through the prison system. There are other ways of punishing those who do not pay fines and I am considering introducing legislation to deal with such people. If a person does not pay a fine within a specified period, the courts may decide that person should serve up to 15 days in prison but, even if they are sent to prison, very few serve that length of time. They also become the subject of the revolving door syndrome.
I accept that what I stated today is not the correct way of tackling the problems in our society and I have made efforts to improve the present system. I do not want hardened criminals sentenced by our courts released before serving their full sentence. Society expects such people to serve their full sentence. More people could be put on community service work and monitored under the probation and welfare service or the juvenile liaison scheme. There are other methods by which people can pay the price to the community for crimes they have committed which would not necessitate their being incarcerated in our prisons.
Would the Minister agree it would be very simple if, every time the governor of a prison filled out a temporary release form, he got the relevant prisoner to sign it and filled out a separate document showing how much of the sentence has been served, how much remains unexpired and sent a copy to the Minister's Department? She would be in a better position to answer questions in this House if she could get that information from a two-line document. Is she not aware that in the 1992 prison report circulated so promptly to Members recently it was stated that in excess of 2,000 young men had been committed to St. Patrick's institution where there are approximately 230 places? This means the revolving door is spinning so fast that all of them are serving, on average, only one month. It is very clear that the vast majority of sentences in that institution are not being served. The Minister must know that these figures are available if she resorts to her own reports.
I have already enunciated extensively my views on my desire for a prison system which would allow people to serve their sentences properly. I am not contending that our prison system is adequate to allow all the people convicted in our courts fuly to serve their sentences. Deputy Michael McDowell knows that and that I am not in any way concealing the fact that it is unsatisfactory.
With regard to the Deputy's suggestion of the simple completion of a form, I am glad to inform him that information technology has caught up in our prisons as well.
I would not ask the Minister to spend any money on it.
I have visited the prisons and I have seen computers and prison staff collating information we were unable to obtain heretofore. I do not know whether the Deputy was present when I replied earlier to Deputy O'Donoghue that at last information technology is becoming available in our prisons and Garda stations which will allow all future Ministers for Justice to answer questions more fully. The bottom line is we do not have a good statistical information base in a number of these areas——
——because the Minister does not want it.
The Deputy's suggestion of completing a simple form would involve its transmission back to the Department.
It should be a matter of public record whenever a prisoner is temporarily released.
I shall request prison governors to improve or augment the information they furnish to my Department. It will be a matter of compiling it in a manner that can be easily retrieved and used by way of answer to parliamentary questions. Many questions tabled to Ministers involve a large amount of statistical information not available in the desired manner but hopefully it will be available with the introduction of information technology. Whenever I can I indicate to Members that I will follow up on my replies, which I have done. Members have received such follow-up material and, if not, I will readily supply it.
Within the past hour or so the Minister has given a considerable number of promises in this House, involving an attitude of "live horse and you'll get grass". Would she say definitively when she proposes to introduce a positive sentence management policy and recruit additional probation officers?
The Law Reform Commission is completing its study of sentence management. As the Deputy will know, they issued a discussion document in 1993 and requested submissions thereon, which they have received. They are now finalising their report which I hope to receive before the end of this year. The Attorney General receives their reports first.
Funds have been allocated within the Vote for my Department this year to increase the number of probation officers. I should like to increase their number considerably because the manner of managing some prisoners, when released early, leaves a lot to be desired. There is no doubt we need additional probation officers and with the resources available to me, I will be doing my utmost to make available as many as I possibly can.
