Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 5 July 2016
102. Deputy Fergus O'Dowd asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality her views on issues and concerns raised by the Irish Penal Reform Trust (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19570/16]
View answerThe document from the Irish Penal Reform Trust (IPRT) supplied with this question essentially calls for a 'whole of Government' approach to prevention of offending and re-offending.
Such an approach is a key theme of the report of the Penal Policy Review Group which I submitted to Government in November, 2014. That Review Group was established in 2012 in line the recommendations of the Thornton Hall Project Review Group to conduct a wide ranging strategic review of penal policy taking into account relevant work already carried out in this jurisdiction and elsewhere, the rights of those convicted of crimes, the perspective of those who are victims of crime, and the interests of society in general.
The terms of reference for the Group included an examination and analysis of the role of penal policy in crime prevention; sentencing policies; alternatives to custody; custodial accommodation and regimes; reintegration and rehabilitation; and any special issues relating to female offenders.
The Report contains 43 recommendations relating, inter alia, to an increased focus on effective data management and to my Department joining with all Government Departments and agencies to facilitate and support research in order to assist in the formulation of penal policy.
One of the recommendations of the Review Group specifically recognises that a whole of government approach in collaboration with relevant agencies and local authorities is necessary in addressing offending behaviour and assisting offenders in maintaining crime free lives. My Department, the Probation Service and the Irish Prison Service fully support this approach.
As outlined in the recently published Irish Prison Service Strategic Plan 2016-2018, the IPS will place a renewed emphasis on prisoner rehabilitation by further developing and re-engineering services designed to address the factors that contribute to offending. My Department is currently in communication with the Department of Health in relation to a fundamental review of health care in prisons and the provision of health care services in prisons generally.
The IPS in collaboration with HSE Mental Health Services has detailed specific goals in relation to improving mental health service provision in all closed prisons, over the course of the next strategic cycle. The IPS will continue to advance collaborative relationships with other key statutory and community services to improve arrangements to ensure the safe transition of individuals from custody to community.
Work is under way to progress the implementation of the recommendations of the Review Group. To this end I have established a Penal Policy Implementation Oversight Group. The Group is chaired by Dr. Mary Rogan, Associate Professor, School of Law, Trinity College who was a member of the review group. The Group organised a Workshop on 8 February 2016 of the key actors in order to discuss the recommendations of the Penal Policy Review Group and advance their implementation. I have recently received the second report from this group setting out the state of implementation and it is my intention to publish this report shortly.
