Brian Walsh (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the opportunity to contribute briefly to this important debate on legislation which brings Ireland into line with all of its EU partners by providing for spent convictions. The application of the Bill is tempered by careful and specific constraints which ensure that the protection of the public remains paramount at all times. The Bill does not provide for a criminal record to be simply wiped clean. It removes the requirement for a person to disclose a conviction in certain limited circumstances following the lapse of a certain period of time. In this regard, Ireland remains more stringent than certain other jurisdictions which provide for convictions to be expunged and criminal records to be destroyed entirely. In addition, the provisions of the Bill will apply only to convictions resulting in prison sentences of up to 12 months or to lesser penalties including community service orders or fines. Convictions for sexual offences and other serious crimes are outside the scope of the Bill, while no more than two convictions may become spent in respect of any individual. Crucially, anyone seeking to work with children or other vulnerable persons will not be able to avail of the provisions of the Bill. These and other restrictions which constrain the application of the legislation adequately safeguard society from any ex-offender who would seek to take advantage of its provisions with a view to committing further crimes.

The introduction of the Bill is long overdue. As far back as 2007, the Law Reform Commission made recommendations on spent convictions, and legislation has been discussed in the House on numerous occasions in the intervening years. The Law Reform Commission's recommendations were born of the idea that the purpose of the criminal justice system is not merely to punish offenders but to rehabilitate them. I take the example of a person who in a moment of youthful indiscretion at 18 years of age committed an offence resulting in conviction and a community service order. Currently, that individual would be obliged to disclose the conviction in a job interview even if the offence had taken place decades previously. This makes it extremely difficult for such a person to find a job. Research carried out by the Small Firms Association suggests that up to 87% of employers would be reluctant to hire a former offender. Thus begins the cycle of criminality. The inability to find a job can make it difficult to reintegrate into society and to cope financially which, in turn, can act as an economic incentive to re-offend.

In the absence of provisions for spent convictions, even a relatively minor offence represents a life sentence of sorts. Its implications can endure for the rest of a person's life. Instead of placing a burdensome millstone around a convicted person's neck, we must present people with a path to a place in the community, the workforce and society. Where a person demonstrates a positive change in his or her ways by remaining free of convictions for the required period, the legislation will assist with his or her rehabilitation. The introduction of the Bill represents a progressive move which brings Ireland's law into kilter with the laws of other member states. I commend the Minister on the carefully balanced and considered form of the legislation he has brought before the House.

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