Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)

I am astounded by the comments I have heard from the Government benches in the past few minutes.

There is a strong perception, which is reflected in reality, that criminals have more rights under the current criminal justice system than victims. While that is incorrect, it is certainly the perception. What is great about the legislation before the House is that we are trying to address that issue and put forward constructive proposals and solutions.

I commend my colleague, Deputy Shatter, on the substantial amount of work he has done in putting together the comprehensive legislation before the House. We have no proposals from the Government. I am amused to listen to Deputies speak about proposed Government legislation which has not been written or published and which, clearly, they have not read. It is ludicrous. The legislation we are discussing, in case they need reminding, has been proposed and published by the Fine Gael Party. The Government has no proposals for victims' rights legislation, and there is no prospect of it in the immediate future. Let us get real about this debate.

The Fine Gael Party has put forward a comprehensive Bill, drafted by Deputy Shatter. It is a substantial Bill that merits serious consideration. The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, seems to be opposed to the recognition of victims' rights or, if he is not, he is opposed to any substantial recognition of victims' rights. That is unfortunate. He is unnecessarily opposing the Bill. Our legislation would give victims substantial rights and restore dignity to them — which is extremely important — dignity that is not afforded to them by the criminal justice system.

The only commitment to date is that the Minister has promised that he will sometime, perhaps next year, introduce legislation which would confer a statutory right on bereaved family members of a homicide victim to make a victim impact statement. That is the only commitment and we do not know if or when it will become a reality. That proposal is identical to that contained in the Fine Gael Bill. It is unfortunate that appears to be the only aspect of our Bill the Minister has accepted. It would appear he has ruled out a whole raft of other concrete and positive suggestions put forward by the Fine Gael Party. If one looks at that proposal in isolation, it means that a tiny minority of victims would benefit from the legislation, but the vast majority of victims would not benefit from any additional protections, if the Minister has his way. That would be unfortunate.

It appears the Minister is opposed to the substantial reforms proposed by Fine Gael. For example, we propose an independent commission for victims of crime, an important step, and that victims be furnished with victim impact statements before sentencing for all offences, not just for a few. That is central to this debate and a point to which none of the Deputies on the other side has referred.

I will not go through all the proposals contained in the Bill. Some of them are particularly significant, for example, the obligation to keep victims informed at all stages of a criminal prosecution. I practised for a short time as a barrister. Victims of crime depend on what they are told by their barrister so it depends on the quality of the barrister. There is no legal obligation on the DPP or anybody else to keep victims informed as the case proceeds. This is alienating and leads to fear, isolation and a strong belief that victims are not catered for at the heart of the criminal justice system.

The reality is that if Fianna Fáil was serious about addressing victims' rights, it would support the Bill, instead of doing the political thing. As I said at the outset, this is not just a matter of rights for victims, but a fundamental matter of dignity for victims of crime.

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