Paul Murphy
Question:883. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Minister for Justice her plans to bring forward amendments in relation to the Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions and Certain Disclosures) Act 2016. [41729/21]
View answerThursday, 9 September 2021
Questions (883)
Written answers
The Government commits in the Programme for Government to reviewing the Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions and Certain Disclosures) Act 2016 and to broaden the range of convictions that are considered spent. As part of this review process, a public consultation on spent convictions was launched in October 2020. My Department is continuing work on identifying and assessing the possible implications of amending the 2016 Act so that the fairest possible outcomes can be achieved for the public.
In that regard, the Deputy may be aware that the Government did not oppose a Private Members Bill – Criminal Justice (Rehabilitative Periods) Bill 2018 - on this subject as it passed Report and Final Stages in the Seanad on 28 June 2021. This Bill proposes to amend and considerably extend the 2016 Act. The Government has noted my intention to bring forward amendments to this Bill in Dáil Éireann and I look forward to doing so later this year.