Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael)

I join my colleague in congratulating the Minister, Deputy Alan Shatter, who will be very proactive and hands-on, as is needed. We must realise the deep challenge posed to us by the public to have a more proactive and interactive Dáil and Deputy Shatter is a Minister who will take on board many points of view and observations from both sides of the House.

On the Bill, I am confident the community service orders that will be introduced by different judges will be creative and will add value to communities. We must be cognisant that many laws already introduced are not being implemented or taken on board by many judges. While many of these laws are discretionary, at the same time, we should consider a full appraisal of the existing laws. Having spoken to many gardaí, I find there is anecdotal evidence that a large number of offences involve repeat offenders and that the vast majority of those arrested are out on bail. We should have a full catalogue and itinerary to find out exactly where the problems arise. To take the incidence of burglary, one arrest of a repeat offender in a particular area can result in a vast reduction in the statistics with respect to burglary, so it is an issue on which we need to focus. We must also consider a tightened regime with regard to previous convictions.

With regard to the issue of the caution, following an arrest, a garda will explain to the arrested person that anything said by that person will be taken down in writing. Given the week that is in it, this is a good time to raise the issue of tape recording in custody. At present, there is the archaic situation whereby gardaí must write down everything said while the interview is simultaneously tape recorded. Much time is taken up with respect to the interview and this is not just one-way traffic as we must also consider the extended length of time the arrested person spends being interviewed because everything must be written down. While I am sure the Minister has considered the issue, we should look to the experience in the United Kingdom, where an administrator - a typist - listens to the tape after the interview and prepares a transcript. The current situation is contributing to a zero flow in the progress of interviews, which allows the arrested person to think of different ways to avoid the questions.

Too much Garda time is spent on administration. If we want to focus on prevention, we must consider visibility and the amount of Garda time spent in the community, in households, meeting the people and understanding the needs of the community. Gardaí will not achieve this by being stuck in Garda headquarters filling out forms, which is where they spend most time at present. I accept we live in a heavily administered era, and these are the challenges the Government and the Minister, Deputy Shatter, will tackle into the future.

My own background is in the area of youth work and as a secondary school teacher. In the area of prevention, we should examine our vast resources in terms of primary and secondary school buildings that are vacant after 3 p.m. or 4 p.m. Many community groups are fighting a battle to raise revenue to build, heat, furnish or equip their premises while we have warm primary and secondary school buildings which are vacant from mid-afternoon. We should consider a more synchronised and deeper collaboration between the formal and the informal sector, whereby we can get people engaged in, for example, constructive after-school homework or involvement in the community, and can employ the voluntary sector to the best of its ability in these settings. We should have a more robust debate with boards of management and the Department of Education and Skills in terms of preventative care.

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