Dáil debates

Wednesday, 8 February 2023

Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Custodial Sentences) Bill 2021: Report and Final Stages

 

Bill recommitted in respect of amendment No.1.

5:10 pm

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No.1:

In page 5, line 16, after “enactments;” to insert the following: “to confer a power on the Minister for Justice to direct the conditional release of certain persons serving sentences of imprisonment or persons being detained in a place provided under section 2 of the Prisons Act 1970 and, for that purpose, to amend the Criminal Justice Act 1960 and other enactments; to amend and extend the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act 1995; to amend and extend the Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005; to make provision for matters to which the Parole Board shall have regard in deciding whether to make a parole order in respect of a parole applicant upon whom a sentence was imposed by a court or tribunal in a state, other than the State, the enforcement of which has been transferred to the State and, for that and other purposes, to amend the Parole Act 2019; to give further effect to Council Framework Decision 2009/829/JHA of 23 October 2009 on the application, between Member States of the European Union, of the principle of mutual recognition to decisions on supervision measures as an alternative to provisional detention; for that purpose to amend the Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Decisions on Supervision Measures) Act 2020;”.

Several matters are being added to the Long Title. While I will speak to each area in more detail as the amendments arise, I will give a brief explanation now. Deputies will recall that the purpose of the Bill as introduced is to implement the EU framework decision 2008/909 on the mutual recognition of custodial sentences. This framework decision provides for the transfer of sentenced persons between EU member states and it supersedes the existing Council of Europe convention on the transfer of sentenced persons for transfers within the European Union. Deputies will be aware that the convention is given effect by the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act 1995 and the Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005. Both of these Acts will remain in force and are particularly important as, after Brexit, transfers to and from the UK, which form the bulk of all transfers, take place under them.

On Second Stage I noted that serious legal issues had arisen with convention transfers which would also have affected Ireland's implementation of the framework decision. I stated that I intended to address these issues in this Bill for both the framework decision and the convention by introducing further amendments to both regimes. That is the purpose of the majority of the amendments before the House. The Long Title already covers the provisions on early and conditional release being introduced to the framework decision regime in Part 3 of the Bill. Therefore, the amendment to the Long Title is as a consequence of amendments to the 1995 Act to give effect to similar changes on early and conditional release for the convention regime and to align the 1995 Act with Part 3 of the Bill in terms of how the transfer process works, amendments to the 2005 Act to do the same for that Act and amendments to the Criminal Justice Act 1960. These provide for a new system of conditional release which will be applicable to transfers under all three Acts. Amendments to the Parole Act 2019 to make provision in relation to how life sentences are treated will similarly be applicable to all three Acts. Finally, amendments are being proposed in relation to the Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Decisions on Supervision Measures) Act 2020. These address technical transposition issues with that Act which have been raised by the European Commission in the past 12 months.

For the information of Deputies as we discuss these amendments, different terminology is used in instruments in relation to the state's involved. Generally I will refer to the state where a person transfers from as the "sentencing" state and the state to which the person transfers as the "administrating" state. This is the convention terminology. The framework decision uses "issuing" state and "executing" state, in line with other EU instruments but these terms have the same meaning as "sentencing" and "administrating" state, respectively.

Photo of Seán Ó FearghaílSeán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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This amendment to the Long Title includes reference to the Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Decisions on Supervision Measures) Act 2020, which is the subject of amendment No. 70. The Bill will also require to be recommitted in respect of that amendment. We will deal with that in due course.

Amendment agreed to.

Bill reported with amendment.

Photo of Seán Ó FearghaílSeán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Amendments Nos. 2 to 4, inclusive, 7, 9 to 15, inclusive,18, 19, 26 to 28, inclusive, 46, 48, 49, 52, 53, and 73 to 76, inclusive are related and may be discussed together.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 2:

In page 5, between lines 24 and 25, to insert the following:

“(3) The Transfer of Sentenced Persons Acts 1995 and 1997 and Part 5* may be cited together as the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Acts 1995 to 2023.”.

These amendments are grouped for discussion and cover minor administrative, technical and typographical matters.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 3:

In page 6, between lines 2 and 3, to insert the following: “ “Act of 1960” means the Criminal Justice Act 1960;

“Act of 1995” means the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act 1995;”

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 4:

In page 6, between lines 3 and 4, to insert the following: “ “Act of 2005” means the Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005;”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of Seán Ó FearghaílSeán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Amendments Nos. 5, 6, 71 and 72 are related and may be discussed together.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 5:

In page 7, line 15, after “Union,” to insert “and”.

These amendments were noted during Committee Stage discussions and modify the definition of member state to exclude the non-EU Schengen states. This amendment has been made following consultation with the European Commission on the currently applicable scope of the framework decision. Amendments Nos. 71 and 72 provide for consequential amendments to section 58 of the Bill which allows the Minister to designate a non-member state for the purposes of the Act where the state has adopted the framework decision or an Act amending or building upon it.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 6:

In page 7, to delete lines 16 to 20.

Amendment agreed to.

5:20 pm

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 7:

In page 7, line 25, to delete “and” and substitute “or”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of Seán Ó FearghaílSeán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Amendments Nos. 8, 23 to 25, inclusive, 29 to 45, inclusive, and 47 are related and may be taken together.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 8:

In page 8, line 6, to delete “criminal proceedings;” and substitute the following: “criminal proceedings and includes a punishment or measure that includes a limited or unlimited period of time that is served otherwise than in custody but does not include a part of a sentence the execution of which has been conditionally suspended upon its imposition—

(a) where Part 2applies, by a court in the State, and

(b) where Part 3applies, by a court in an issuing state;”.

Amendments in respect of early and conditional release were noted on Second and Committee Stages and the heads of these amendments were published at the beginning of last year. The transfer of persons serving custodial sentences presents inevitable challenges. States use increasingly complex sentencing structures and, in almost all cases, a sentence is no longer simply a term of years to be served in prison. Instead, sentences incorporate the possibility of accelerated release based on a range of factors. Conversely, they may provide for periods after the ordinary completion of the custodial part of the sentence where a person may be returned to prison if he or she does not abide by post-release conditions and sentences may, by design, incorporate a part served in the community.

The features applicable to a sentence may be determined generally by a state's legal system or be subject to case-by-case determination by a court. The knowledge of how a sentence will be served in a particular state informs a court's decision on what is just to impose. The general approach taken in international prison transfer agreements is that the sentencing state determines the legal nature and duration of the sentence and this is binding on the administering state. The administering state may adapt the legal nature but this may not aggravate the sentence. Thereafter, the administrating state applies its own rules in how the sentence is enforced, covering remission, for example.

The complexities arising are illustrated by the decision of the Supreme Court in Sweeney v. Governor of Loughan House in 2014. The court found that certain foreign provisions on conditional release, including those applying by default in the UK, should be treated as part of the legal nature of the sentence. The effect of the judgment was that typical UK sentences, which contain an automatic conditional release at the halfway point, were treated as if containing two separate elements, namely, a custodial element and a supervised release element, only the custodial element could be transferred and the person would be entitled to a unconditional release thereafter.

Similar legal issues arise under the framework decision. Differences arise even with relatively simple structures. Depending on the law of the other state, a reduction for remission may be indicated and applied at the time of transfer. In other cases, the law of the other state may provide for release upon a portion of the sentence having been served but there is accrual of remission and no reduction applied on transfer. The conditional release may be presumptive rather than automatic. Given that EU case law suggests Irish remission cannot be applied to the part of a sentence served in the other state pre-transfer, Irish remission only applies to the balance of the sentence remaining to be served. If no account is taken of the other state's conditional release mechanism, a sentenced person may face a significantly increased de factotime in custody arising from the loss of benefit from conditional release on the part served pre-transfer.

There are no straightforward solutions to these difficulties. Legislation cannot account for every possible sentence structure that might arise in another state now and in the future. What is necessary is a flexible mechanism that ensures that both the courts and the Minister have appropriate powers to deal with a range of sentence types. This is what is being introduced. The starting point is amendment No. 8, which amends the definition of "sentence" to expressly include parts of the sentence which may have been served otherwise than in custody. Therefore, a new power to grant conditional release is provided for under amendment No. 58. This power allows the Minister to take into account the conditional release provisions applying to the sentence before transfer to avoid a loss of benefit arising. The period of conditional release will usually be calculated on a pro rata basis. A benefit from the other state's system would be given on the part of the sentence served in that state, with Irish remission applying to the parts served in Ireland. If a remission-based system applies in the other state and a deduction has already been made on transfer, further conditional release will not be granted.

With these measures in place, the question becomes which parts of the sentence form the legal nature and duration and which parts form the administration of the sentence. In general, measures in respect of early and conditional release will form part of the administration of the sentence and will not be binding. This reflects well-established international practice and is made clear in Article 17 of the framework decision. Section 43(7) as amended makes clear that the conditional release measures are considered part of the administration and enforcement of the sentence rather than going to the legal nature of the sentence, even where those conditional release measures are automatic and arise by operation of law.

Section 42(8) makes a similar provision in respect of measures determining parole eligibility for life sentences. A minimum custodial period, be it a general provision in respect of all life sentences or a tariff imposed in specific cases, will not be part of the legal nature of the sentence. A life sentence is simply a life sentence, and subject to Irish parole rules. However, amendment No. 68 to the Parole Act 2019 ensures that any such minimum periods are taken into account by the parole board. These amendments do not seek to exhaustively determine what will or will not be considered part of the legal nature of a sentence. The exact determination of what constitutes the legal nature of the sentence in any given case remains with the court.The power to adopt the legal nature of a sentence also remains with the courts and its scope is clarified by amendment No. 30. However, the effect of the other amendments is likely to be that the adaption will not typically be required solely to address or bring early and conditional release measures. Taken together, and for the majority of sentences typically encountered, the effect of the amendments will be that sentences will transfer to the State for the full period of possibility custody. Irish remission will apply to the part of the sentence served after transfer and the Minister will have the power to grant conditional release where appropriate in respect of the parts served before the transfer.

Deputies will note in the definition of "sentence" in amendment No. 8 that for a part-suspended sentence, the suspended element of the sentence is excluded. This is specifically to allow the handling of such sentences using a combination of this framework decision and framework decision 2008/947, which provides for supervision and enforcement of alternative measures.

Finally, I note that certain changes have been introduced in respect of the corresponding offences. These clarify the requirements and, in particular, address situations involving multiple offences.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 9:

In page 8, line 10, to delete “this Act” and substitute “Part 2or 3, as the case may be,”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 10:

In page 8, line 12, to delete “this Act” and substitute “Part 2or 3”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 11:

In page 9, lines 3 and 4, to delete “this Act” and substitute “Part 2or 3or section 52”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 12:

In page 9, lines 8 and 9, to delete “this Act” and substitute “Part 2or 3or section 52”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 13:

In page 9, line 14, to delete “this Act” and substitute “Part 2or 3or section 52”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 14:

In page 9, line 28, to delete “this Act” and substitute “Parts 1to 3 and section 52”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 15:

In page 9, line 35, to delete “Minister of Public Expenditure and Reform” and substitute “Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of Seán Ó FearghaílSeán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Amendments Nos. 16 and 17 are related and may be discussed together.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 16:

In page 11, after line 40, to insert the following: “(3) The Minister shall, at the request of the competent authority of an executing state, make all reasonable efforts to provide such information in connection with the transfer to the executing state of the sentenced person as may be specified in the request to—
(a) the sentenced person, or

(b) where section 12(3)applies, to the legal representative of the sentenced person, or any other person considered by the Minister to be an appropriate person for the purpose of that section.”.

Amendments Nos. 16 and 17 arise from stakeholder and Committee Stage discussions. The amendments make further provision in respect of the information that is provided to the sentenced person regarding an outward transfer and ensure that proper lines of communication exist between a sentenced person and a proposed executing state for such transfers.

Photo of Martin KennyMartin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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All of this is very technical. We understand and appreciate that. I am seeking clarity, however, on an aspect relating particularly to persons who may be sentenced here and serving the sentence in another jurisdiction. What consultation will take place with the victims of the crime in such circumstances? It is an issue that is often raised and I am seeking clarity on it. Perhaps the matter is addressed somewhere in the bowels of the Bill that we have not yet reached. I would appreciate it if the Minister of State were to provide clarity on the issue.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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Victim notification is covered by amendment No. 67. I will speak to the amendment when it is reached.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 17:

In page 14, between lines 5 and 6, to insert the following: “(d) the Minister is satisfied that reasonable steps have been taken to inform the sentenced person in writing in a language that he or she understands of the substance of the arrangements in accordance with which it is proposed to transfer him or her,”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 18:

In page 16, line 29, to delete “Act” and substitute “Part”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 19:

In page 17, line 29, to delete “Act” and substitute “Part”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 20:

In page 17, between lines 34 and 35, to insert the following: “(5) Where, before the coming into operation of section 53, a warrant was issued in respect of a person under section 45B of the Act of 2003, a reference in this section to the order by virtue of which he or she is required to be detained at the time a warrant is issued shall include a reference to an order referred to in section 45B of the Act of 2003 prior to such coming into operation.”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 21:

In page 26, line 8, after “bail” to insert “for a period not exceeding 18 days”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 22:

In page 26, line 12, after “custody” to insert “or the terms of his or her bail”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 23:

In page 26, line 33, after “sentence” to insert “(in its legal nature and duration)”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 24:

In page 30, line 29, after “(5)” to insert “or both”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 25:

In page 30, to delete lines 30 to 32 and substitute the following: “(2) An application under subsection (1)may be made ex parteother than where—
(a) the sentenced person is in the State, or

(b) the appropriate court directs that it is in the interests of justice that it be made on notice to the sentenced person.”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 26:

In page 30, line 33, to delete “by the” and substitute “in the”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 27:

In page 30, line 38, to delete “by” and substitute “in”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 28:

In page 31, line 3, to delete “by the” and substitute “in the”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 29:

In page 31, to delete lines 7 to 17 and substitute the following: “(6) The duration of a sentence adapted under subsection (5)shall, as far as practicable, correspond to the duration of the sentence imposed in the issuing state and shall not, in any event, either—
(a) aggravate it, or

(b) exceed the maximum penalty prescribed by the law of the State for a similar offence.”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 30:

In page 31, to delete lines 25 to 38 and substitute the following: “(9) A sentence shall not be taken by its legal nature to be incompatible with the law of the State by reason only of—
(a) the duration of the sentence imposed in an issuing state,

(b) any provisions of law of the issuing state in respect of early or conditional release which applied to the sentence prior to the transfer of its enforcement to the State,

(c) any provisions of law of the issuing state, other than the provisions referred to in paragraph (b), under which the sentenced person would be entitled to be released from custody, whether under licence or otherwise, at a specified time having served a portion of the sentence,

(d) in the case of a sentence of imprisonment for life—
(i) any restriction for the whole term of the sentence regarding the eligibility of the sentenced person to early or conditional release (including parole), or

(ii) any condition that means that the eligibility of the sentenced person to early or conditional release (including parole) was conditional on his or her having served a specified term of imprisonment as a result of—
(I) a decision or order by the court or tribunal that imposed the sentence,

(II) the operation of law of the issuing state, or

(III) a decision of a body in the issuing state, other than a body referred to in clause (I), on whom a power to make such a decision has been conferred by law,
or

(e) its imposition in the issuing state in respect of more than one offence.
(10) In this section, “incompatible with the law of the State” means—
(a) in so far as it applies to the legal nature of a sentence imposed in an issuing state, a sentence that, subject to subsection (9), consists of a punishment or measure that is different in nature from the punishment or measure which could be imposed on the sentenced person if he or she were—
(i) convicted in the State of an offence corresponding to the offence of which he or she was convicted in the issuing state, or

(ii) the subject of a special verdict under section 5 of the Act of 2006,

and
(b) in so far as it applies to the duration of a sentence imposed in an issuing state, a sentence that is greater than the maximum term of imprisonment or other detention to which the sentenced person would be liable if he or she were convicted in the State of an offence corresponding to the offence of which he or she was convicted in the issuing state.”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 31:

In page 33, to delete line 15 and substitute the following: “(3) An application under subsection (2)shall—
(a) be brought by the Minister after a sentenced person is arrested under warrant issued under section 42(1)(a), or brought into the State under a warrant issued under section 42(1)(b), as the case may be, and

(b) be made on notice to the sentenced person.”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 32:

In page 33, line 16, after “Where” to insert “, for any reason,”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 33:

In page 33, lines 18 to 20, to delete all words from and including “and” in line 18 down to and including “period” in line 20.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 34:

In page 33, line 26, to delete “and section 40(6)”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 35:

In page 33, line 28, after “concerned” to insert “(including where the sentence is adapted in accordance with section 40(3) or (5) or both)”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 36:

In page 33, line 34, after “sentence” to insert “(including where the sentence is adapted in accordance with section 40(3)or (5)or both)”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 37:

In page 33, line 39, after “release,” to insert “and”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 38:

In page 34, to delete lines 1 to 4.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 39:

In page 34, line 5, to delete “without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (a)or (b),”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 40:

In page 34, line 6, after “entitled” to insert “, other than in accordance with paragraph (a),”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 41:

In page 34, line 10, to delete “, and not the legal nature or duration,”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 42:

In page 34, between lines 12 and 13, to insert the following: “(8) Where a committal order is made in respect of a sentenced person who has been sentenced to a term of imprisonment for life in an issuing state, the order shall specify that the person is to be committed for imprisonment for life irrespective of whether his or her eligibility for early or conditional release (including parole) in the issuing state was—
(a) restricted for the whole term of the sentence, or

(b) conditional on his or her having served a specified term of imprisonment as a result of—
(i) a decision or order by the court or tribunal that imposed the sentence,

(ii) the operation of law of the issuing state, or

(iii) a decision of a body in the issuing state, other than a body referred to in subparagraph (i), on whom a power to make such a decision has been conferred by law.”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 43:

In page 34, line 19, to delete “by the State of a sentence imposed by” and substitute “in the State of a sentence (in its legal nature and duration) imposed in”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 44:

In page 34, lines 38 and 39, to delete “Criminal Justice Act 1960” and substitute “Act of 1960 or be released for such period as may be specified by the Minister under section 2A of that Act”.

Amendment agreed to.

5:40 pm

Photo of Martin KennyMartin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein)
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It is very clear the victims of crime have a role and will at least be consulted and made aware of what is happening. Very often in the past, we have come across situations where the victim of a crime has discovered something by hearing it on the grapevine or when meeting somebody on the street. That is not appropriate and we need to ensure that will not happen in the future.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 68:

In page 45, after line 38, to insert the following:

“Amendment of Parole Act 2019

58.The Parole Act 2019 is amended— (a) in section 2—
(i) in subsection (1), in the definition of “relevant governor”—
(I) in paragraph (b), by the substitution of “so released,” for “so released, or”, and

(II) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (b):
“(ba) where the parole applicant or parolee, as the case may be, is on conditional release from prison in accordance with a direction given by the Minister under section 2A of the Act of 1960, the governor of the prison from which he or she is so released, or”,
and

(ii) in subsection (3)—
(I) in paragraph (a)—
(A) by the substitution of “including” for “including both”,

(B) in subparagraph (i), by the substitution of “Act of 2001,” for “Act of 2001, and”,

(C) in subparagraph (ii), by the substitution of “Act of 1960, and” for “Act of 1960,” and

(D) by the insertion of the following subparagraph after subparagraph (ii):
“(iii) a person who is released from prison on conditional release in accordance with a direction given by the Minister under section 2A of the Act of 1960,”,
and

(II) in paragraph (b)—
(A) in subparagraph (ii), by the substitution of “imprisonment,” for “imprisonment, and”,

(B) in subparagraph (iii), by the substitution of “that Act, and” for “that Act,” and

(C) by the insertion of the following subparagraph after subparagraph (iii):
“(iv) any time spent on conditional release from prison for a period in accordance with a direction given by the Minister under section 2A of the Act of 1960 while serving the sentence of imprisonment other than time spent on such release where the currency of the sentence of the person is suspended pursuant to section 5 of that Act,”,
(b) in section 6, by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (a):
“(aa) the power of the Minister to give a direction that a person be released from prison for a period under section 2A of the Act of 1960,”,
and

(c) in section 27—
(i) in subsection (2)—
(I) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (b):
“(ba) without prejudice to paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) to (m), in the case of a foreign sentence—
(i) any restriction, notified in writing to the Minister by the state in which the sentence was imposed, for the whole term of the sentence regarding the eligibility of the sentenced person to early or conditional release (including parole),

(ii) any condition, notified in writing to the Minister by the state in which the sentence was imposed, that means the eligibility of the sentenced person to early or conditional release (including parole) was conditional on his or her having served a specified term of imprisonment where the condition was as a result of—
(I) a decision or order by the court or tribunal that imposed the sentence,

(II) the operation of law of the state in which the sentence was imposed, or

(III) a decision of a body in the state in which the sentence was imposed, other than a body referred to in clause (I), on whom a power to make such a decision has been conferred by law,”,
and

(II) in paragraph (e)(iii), by the insertion of “or 2A” after “section 2”,
and

(ii) by the insertion of the following subsections after subsection (3):
“(4) For the purposes of subsection (2)(b), a reference in that subsection to any recommendation of the court that imposed the sentence shall, in the case of a foreign sentence, be construed as a reference to any recommendation of the court or tribunal in the state that imposed the sentence.

(5) In this section, ‘foreign sentence’, means—
(a) a sentence of imprisonment for life, or

(b) a sentence of imprisonment of a term equivalent to or longer than such term as may be prescribed in regulations made by the Minister under section 24(3),
that is imposed by a court or tribunal in a state, other than the State, the enforcement of which has been transferred to the State and thereafter continued in accordance with a committal order within the meaning of the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act 1995, the Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005 or Part 3 of the Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Custodial Sentences) Act 2023, as the case may be.”.”.

The amendments to the Parole Act 2019 are the final piece in addressing the treatment of early and conditional release measures. Deputies will be aware that eligibility for parole in Ireland arises for life sentence prisoners who have served 12 years and that, on average, a person serves approximately 20 years in custody before being released. Ireland does not have a court-determined tariff system, a minimum custodial period determined on a case-by-case basis, and it is not possible to transfer in such a tariff as a binding measure. Therefore, the approach being taken is to extend the existing provision in the Act that requires the Parole Board to have regard to any recommendation of the court imposing sentence. The board will now be required to have regard to any conditions or restrictions applicable to the life sentence that would have affected a person's eligibility for parole had the transfer not occurred. The provisions of the sentencing state shall not prejudice the eligibility of the person for parole, persons shall not become eligible for parole at an earlier point than they would have in respect of an Irish sentence, and persons shall continue to be eligible for parole notwithstanding that they would not have been eligible in the other state. No presumption of a grant of parole at the point of release in the sentencing state shall apply in respect of a life sentence.

Further amendments are made to the Act with regard to its interaction with the conditional release mechanism under section 2A of the Criminal Justice Act 1960. These are included for completeness should, at some future point, the application of the Act be extended to determinate sentences.

I note that a review into the introduction of a tariff system for domestic sentences is under way. These provisions will be reviewed in light of developments in this area.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 69:

In page 46, to delete lines 18 to 25 and substitute the following: “(a) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (a):
“(aa) the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act 1995,”,
(b) in paragraph (c), by the substitution of “the European Arrest Warrant Act 2003,” for “the European Arrest Warrant Act 2003, or”,

(c) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (c):
“(ca) the Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005,”,
(d) in paragraph (d), by the substitution of “the International Criminal Court Act 2006, or” for “the International Criminal Court Act 2006,”, and

(e) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (d):
“(e) Part 3 of theCriminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Custodial Sentences) Act 2023,”.”.

Amendment agreed to.

Bill recommitted in respect of amendment No. 70.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 70:

In page 46, between lines 25 and 26, to insert the following: “Amendment of Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Decisions on Supervision Measures) Act 2020

58.The Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Decisions on Supervision Measures) Act 2020 is amended—

(a) in section 11—
(i) in subsection (1), by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (b):
“(b) establishes that he or she—
(i) is lawfully and ordinarily resident in another Member State, or

(ii) intends to reside in a Member State, other than that referred to in subparagraph (i), and the competent authority of the other Member State has consented to the forwarding of the proposed supervision decision,
and”,
and

(ii) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (11):
“(12) In this section, ‘other Member State’, in relation to a person, means—
(a) where subsection (1)(b)(i) applies, the Member State in which the person is lawfully and ordinarily resident, and

(b) where subsection (1)(b)(ii) applies, the Member State in which the person intends to reside.”,
(b) in section 12—
(i) in subsection (1)—
(I) by the substitution of the following paragraph for paragraph (a):
“(a) is—
(i) lawfully and ordinarily resident in another Member State, or

(ii) a person in respect of whom the competent authority of another Member State has consented to the forwarding of the proposed supervision decision,”,
and

(II) in paragraph (c), by the substitution of “reside in the other Member State” for “return to the other Member State to reside therein”,
(ii) in subsection (2), by the substitution of “reside in” for “return to”, and

(iii) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (3):
“(4) In this section, ‘other Member State’, in relation to a person, means—
(a) where subsection (1)(a)(i) applies, the Member State in which the person is lawfully and ordinarily resident, and

(b) where subsection (1)(a)(ii) applies, the Member State the competent authority of which has consented to the forwarding of a proposed supervision decision in relation to the person.”,
(c) in section 13, by the substitution of “(within the meaning of section 11 or 12, as the case may be)” for “concerned”,

(d) in section 14—
(i) in subsection (1), by the substitution of “(within the meaning of section 11 or 12, as the case may be)” for “concerned”, and

(ii) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (7):
“(8) The Central Authority shall not forward a supervision decision to more than one executing state at any one time.”,
and

(e) in section 28, by the insertion of the following subsections after subsection (7):
“(8) Where a court or person employed by, or acting for or on behalf of, the public administration of the State receives a supervision decision and Article 10 certificate directly from the competent authority of an issuing State, the court or person, as the case may be, shall—
(a) as soon as practicable send or arrange for the sending of, the documents to the Central Authority, and

(b) as soon as practicable so inform the competent authority of the issuing State by any means capable of producing a record in writing.
(9) For the purposes of this Part, the sending of a supervision decision and Article 10 certificate to the Central Authority under subsection (8) shall be deemed to constitute the forwarding of the documents to the Central Authority.”.”.

Amendment agreed to.

Bill reported with amendment.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 71:

In page 46, line 28, to delete “paragraph (a) or (b)” and substitute “paragraph (a)”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 72:

In page 46, line 30, to delete “paragraph (c)” and substitute “paragraph (b)”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 73:

In page 46, line 37, to delete “this Act comes” and substitute “Parts 1to3come”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 74:

In page 47, lines 1 and 2, to delete “the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act 1995” and substitute “the Act of 1995”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 75:

In page 47, line 3, to delete “the Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005” and substitute “the Act of 2005”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of James BrowneJames Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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I move amendment No. 76:

In page 47, lines 7 and 8, to delete “under the Transfer of Sentenced Persons Act 1995 or the Transfer of Execution of Sentences Act 2005” and substitute “under the Act of 1995 or the Act of 2005”.

Amendment agreed to.

Photo of Seán Ó FearghaílSeán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Hallelujah.

Bill, as amended, received for final consideration and passed.

Photo of Seán Ó FearghaílSeán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Bill will be sent to the Seanad. That is the most efficient business we have done here in a very long time. I thank everyone very much for their co-operation.

Cuireadh an Dáil ar fionraí ar 4.44 p.m. agus cuireadh tús leis arís ar 4.52 p.m.

Sitting suspended at 4.44 p.m. and resumed at 4.52 p.m.