Ms Deirdre Malone:

I believe it is crucial for An Garda Síochána to have sufficient staff numbers within the community, time and resources to monitor the bail conditions which are imposed currently. This is not happening at the moment because the Garda does not have any of those supports. I spoke with a local community in Athy about this. The first concern of the community was not about the bail laws but the fact that the local Garda station had been decimated and gardaí could no longer be seen on the beat. The community was also aware, and we know this from our own research, that where conditions are imposed that they may not be monitored. It is important that the Garda has the resources with which to monitor bail conditions, but those resources were slashed in the past. That situation seems to be turning around now, which is positive. Electronic tagging can be useful in appropriate cases. For example, if the purpose of an electronic tag is to provide an alternative to remanding a person or to ensure the person resides in a particular place or does not enter a particular place or is under curfew at certain time, these are less intrusive measures than losing one's liberty pending trial. While they are nonetheless an interference with a person's liberty, they may be necessary and proportionate in certain cases. This is why, when we saw the inclusion of electronic tagging, we stated in our submission that we always welcome alternatives to imprisonment as long as they are considered deeply, and that tagging may be an effective alternative to imprisonment. However, international research shows that the contributory causes of crime in a substantial number of cases such as shoplifting and burglary can often be symptomatic of a need or desire to feed an addiction, and this is reflected in the problems we see in our prison population. This cannot be ignored. There is almost a consensus among speakers at this committee on the need to decriminalise drug use and the need to look at addiction as a health issue rather than a criminal justice issue. This should never be considered as an excuse to allow people to enter other people's homes, but we have to deal with the cause of these events and not simply warehouse the symptoms of the events.