Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I fully agree with the Deputy that somebody who is released from prison should not be allowed to continue to harass or to engage in behaviour that causes alarm, distress or upset that has serious implications for a person. Obviously, there is discretion for any judge to say that, on release, the person cannot engage with a person or go within X amount of miles of a person, but I am also aware that does not always happen. Understanding the case the Deputy mentioned and knowing that this is happening not just to one individual but to many others, a new civil order I am proposing as part of the stalking and harassment legislation would enable a person to bring forward a case to the civil court without having to go through a criminal process or procedure.

It is obviously much more challenging and lengthy to essentially have a civil protection order against an individual where they engage in particular types of behaviour, such as communicating to, at or with the person through another person, directly interfering with the person's day-to-day lives or causing alarm or distress. It does not have to be that they are physically engaging with the person all of the time and it could be through many and various different means. Once the person is able to show some form of evidence of those different behaviours, which are set out clearly in the stalking legislation, then he or she would be able to receive a civil protection mechanism, which in certain instances would be hugely helpful.

I hope that matter will be dealt with. What I might do is make sure that as that separate legislation is progressing, it covers this type of instance where there are people who have been victims of sexual offences and where the perpetrators are released and are engaging. I will 100% make sure that that covers it.