Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

The administration of justice is exclusively the duty of the courts and it would be inappropriate for any Minister to advise the courts on how to carry out sentencing in individual cases. The specific provision to which the Deputy referred, which places obligations on parents in regard to offences committed by their children, was not commenced until July 2007. Certain changes had to be made to District Court rules subsequent to that. These measures were not put into law for no reason and it is clearly our intention that they be implemented. However, we also must acknowledge that the majority of children who come before the Children's Court do so against a background of chaotic family life. In such cases, the District Court judge is informed by Garda liaison officers and probation officers as to the most appropriate way of dealing with them. Attempting to place attachment orders on the parents may not be the most appropriate solution. However, I take the Deputy's point that these measures should be implemented. They were included for a reason.

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