Martin Kenny
Question:695. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Justice if her Department has a protocol or checklist that is used for public consultations in relation to recent public consultations. [45078/20]
View answerWednesday, 13 January 2021
Questions (695, 696)
Martin Kenny
Question:696. Deputy Martin Kenny asked the Minister for Justice if her Department has considered the introduction of a summary report for civil society organisations between the submissions stage and the publication of a strategy by her Department in relation to recent public consultations. [45079/20]
View answerWritten answers
I propose to take Questions Nos. 695 and 696 together.
My Department is fully committed to engaging with the public and our stakeholders as part of the development of new strategies, public policy or proposed changes to legislation. In recent years, the Department of Justice has put a lot of energy into transforming the way it works, with the objective of becoming a more outward facing, collaborative and more effective organisation.
This includes the use of public consultations to engage directly with communities and members of the public to listen and better understand their views and perspectives. In 2020, my Department conducted a wide-range of public consultations on a variety of key strategies and initiatives, including:
- The Department’s Strategy Statement;
- Hate speech;
- Spent convictions;
- Part 4 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017;
- Strategy for the Criminal Justice System;
- Discount rate in personal injury cases; and
- Youth Justice Strategy.
As part of the consultation process, the Department uses a variety of methods, leveraging technology and real-time information, to increase awareness of our consultations and maximise engagement, including:
- ‘Policy forum’ events, involving key stakeholder groups from NGOs and civil society, legal practitioners and academics;
- Online surveys;
- Online consultations/workshops;
- Call for written submissions; and
- Targeted digital engagement across our social media platforms.
As the Deputy can appreciate, the COVID-19 pandemic posed challenges in relation to the physical aspect of our public consultations. Recognising the importance of public engagement, my Department re-designed its consultation processes to include online workshops, ensuring our public consultations could continue.
Feedback is central to the consultative process and all contributions are considered as part of the development of new polices and legislation. The results of consultations are posted online, with the exception of submissions that are deemed sensitive or include personal information. As every consultation is different, there is no current checklist used.
In addition, the Department always welcomes and considers all suggestions and feedback on ways to improve the consultation process.