Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 13 Apr 2000

Vol. 518 No. 2

Written Answers. - Crime Prevention.

Ivor Callely

Question:

123 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the crime prevention programme and plan over the next five years; the targets contained in such crime prevention; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [11248/00]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. O'Donoghue)

As the Deputy may be aware, under the current National Development Plan 2000-2006 a provision of £87 million was made for the first time for my Department to fund a broadly based programme aimed at preventing crime through measures to achieve social inclusion and labour market participation. The co-ordinated programme has three components, Garda projects for youth diversion, probation and welfare service projects and a prisoner's project. The programme is a unique opportunity to address the complex issues that arise in the Government's commitment to achieving progress towards social inclusion.

In relation to the Garda youth diversion programme, the Government has decided to provide £16 million over the life of the NDP to support the establishment of a number of additional projects in both rural and urban areas under the Garda youth diversion programme. The programme aims, through intervention and prevention and through community and multi-agency co-operation, to divert young people from becoming involved in crime. The long-term objective is to enable the target group – ten to 18 year olds – to integrate into the labour force in a systematic manner and to prevent them from becoming unemployable. The Department, in conjunction with the Garda Síochána, has identified a number of locations as being appropriate for the establishment of Garda youth diversion projects encompassing the various regions.

The projects will be developed at local level on an inter-agency basis in partnership with other State agencies providing services and developing capacity in the skills, education, self-improvement and employment areas. In order to ensure a coherent service for the target group a process of consultation and co-ordination with other Government Departments and statutory agencies is currently under way. Final decisions on specific locations will then be made following completion of this process.

I am pleased to say that I have also obtained provision of £25 million in the NDP for the probation and welfare service for social integration projects. The funding will be used to foster a number of specialised and targeted programmes directed at persons coming to the attention of the criminal justice system and-or the courts and to address behaviours and symptoms which are characteristic of social inclusion.

In implementing the strategy the probation and welfare service will focus on the following areas: engaging the community; the provision of probation centres; development centres; and measures to tackle social exclusion.

I have also secured provision of £46 million over the next six years for a prisons project aimed at preparing prisoners for labour market participation after their release. The pioneering programme in this area is the CONNECT project. It is an action-research project run by my Department in collaboration with the National Training and Development Institute. All actions initiated by CONNECT and other projects under this programme aim to develop and evaluate a more effective system to improve the employability of offenders while in custody.