Lynn Ruane (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Cathaoirleach and colleagues for allowing me to present to the committee today. I will mainly be covering the Private Members’ Bill, the Criminal Justice (Rehabilitative Periods) Bill 2019, which I was delighted to see pass Second Stage in the Seanad in February with unanimous, cross-party support. The Bill would expand access to spent convictions to people other than those allowed for under the limited and unfortunately inadequate provisions of the Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions and Certain Disclosures) Act, passed by the Oireachtas more than three and a half years ago. I also welcome the fact that we will be discussing spent convictions reform more generally.

My motivation for introducing the Bill was based in the rehabilitative principles that underlie the justice system and my belief that a person who committed an offence in the past should be given a fair and reasonable opportunity to reintegrate into society after a set period has passed without him or her reoffending. Previous convictions for minor, non-violent offences act as an unfair and disproportionate barrier to resources, opportunities a person needs to enter or re-enter employment, and education or travel after a period of offending behaviour. While our current law was a welcome first step in legislating in respect of this important area, it is unfortunately not fulfilling its rehabilitative aims. It is extraordinarily limited in scope and in practice and is simply not accessible to former offenders who need and deserve to benefit from its provisions. Of particular note is the limitation placed by the single conviction rule. Under this rule, only one conviction outside of minor driving and public order offences can become spent and the rehabilitative period one has to wait before a conviction is spent is set at a blanket seven years for all crimes, no matter how long or short the sentence handed down.

My Bill seeks to expand fair access to spent convictions in four ways, namely: by increasing the length of custodial and non-custodial sentences that are eligible to become spent; by removing the single conviction rule from the current Act; by making the waiting period, or rehabilitative period, proportional to the length of a sentence; and by creating a more generous regime for young adults between the ages of 18 and 23 in light of their greater rehabilitative needs. The reintegration and rehabilitation of former offenders protects society from further acts of crime. All international evidence demonstrates that a well-designed and fair spent convictions regime works to reduce recidivism and benefits both the individual and society as a whole. When access to spent convictions is made available to individuals, incidences of crime and reoffending decrease as unnecessary conviction disclosures for minor, non-violent, non-sexual crimes no longer serve as a barrier to progression.

As a former community worker, I know from first-hand experience that, when working in professions relating to addiction or homelessness or in the areas of teaching or social work, having similar experiences to those with whom one works is invaluable. Some of the best community workers and drug workers with whom I have worked have had previous convictions. However, there are many who will never get the chance to work within the communities that need them most due to old, minor offences on their records. These offences are simply no longer relevant to their lives due to a combination of the passage of time, changes in behaviour and circumstance, and major, substantive rehabilitation.

Since introducing this Bill, I have been inundated with heart-breaking testimony from people in these kinds of circumstances. I have heard from students who have reached the second or third year of their degrees in the social sciences and who have then been refused work placement based on old minor offences that are still on their records. We have had representations from professionals in high-level positions in the Civil Service and public bodies who will not apply for promotion due to a 20 year old mark on their record. This is not only harmful for the individual but detrimental to society as our laws are literally forcing people out of education, employment and progression. There is a cost to the individual and to society as a whole under the current regime and it needs to change.

This is an area that affects those from all walks of life and socioeconomic backgrounds. It impacts on everyone from young men who are refused entry to the Army point-blank, to young women and lone parents who locked out of education and courses such as courses in social work, through to people from all sectors of society who are prohibited from visiting family members abroad who emigrated during the years of austerity. In cases like these, we are talking about convictions for possession of €15 worth of cannabis literally keeping families apart.

While this issue affects everyone, the limits of the current law have a disproportionate impact on marginalised, poorer and working-class communities. This is made worse by the fact that the Act makes no allowance for more than one conviction to become spent, apart from an unlimited number of minor driving and public order offences. This makes it easy to criticise the law as one written for the middle classes. Removing the single conviction rule is an absolute must in this respect.

I brought this Bill forward because a spent convictions law is of no use if people cannot access it, which is unfortunately the case under the status quo. My Bill is compassionate, fair and balanced and represents the right thing to do. I hope that the committee can give the Bill its full support. I thank members for their time.