Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 10 February 2022
369. Deputy Jennifer Carroll MacNeill asked the Minister for Justice if she plans to review the Fines Act 2010 and the Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014 to determine if they require amendment to reduce committal rates for defaults on court-ordered fines; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [7118/22]
View answerThe Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014 came into force on 11 January 2016. It provides for alternative orders to imprisonment in the event that a court imposed fine is not paid.
The Act was introduced to help address the high level of short-term prison sentences for the non-payment of court imposed fines. In 2015, prior to commencement of the Act, there were 9,883 committals to prison for non-payment of fines. By 2019 this had fallen to only 861; a reduction of 91%. I am satisfied therefore that in terms of reducing committal rates, the 2014 Act has achieved that objective.
That said, the fine collection system provided for in the 2014 Act has proven cumbersome to operate and it is currently being reviewed by a High Level Group chaired by my Department with a view to bringing forward proposals to streamline the system.
