Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time."

I am standing in for Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Alan Shatter, who is in Brussels to chair a meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council. I am pleased on his behalf to be able to present the Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill 2012 to the House today.

Over the years many interest groups have called for the introduction of spent convictions legislation in Ireland. Their calls got a major leg-up when the Law Reform Commission published its landmark report on spent convictions in 2007. That report was based on robust analysis and provided a solid platform from which the matter was catapulted onto the floor of this House on two occasions. The report contained a draft Bill which has been before this House twice. First, the former Minister of State, Barry Andrews, introduced it as a Private Members' Bill which was taken over by the then Government, but which lapsed on the dissolution of the last Dáil. In May 2011, Deputy Dara Calleary brought it forward as a Private Members' Bill in the form of the Spent Convictions Bill 2011. While those Bills contained the flaws that had been identified in the draft produced by the Law Reform Commission, they had the effect of keeping the issue on the agenda, and when the Minister, Deputy Alan Shatter replied to the Second Stage debate on Deputy Calleary's Bill on 7 June 2011, he announced that the Government would not oppose the Bill on Second Stage but indicated that the Government would bring forward its own Bill, without delay. This we did with the publication of the Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill 2012 last May.

In drafting this Bill during the latter part of 2011 and in early 2012, the Minister was keen to take on board the views of Members of the Oireachtas and the various interested parties outside these Houses. I want to mention particularly on his behalf the Irish Human Rights Commission and the Irish Penal Reform Trust, both of whom have produced considered and reasoned analyses of our proposals. The Minister has reflected on the issues they have raised and, where possible, has taken them into account in the drafting of the Bill. Deputies will be aware also that the Bill before this House has been amended in a number of significant respects in the other House to take on board the views expressed on the Bill as published.

The Minister has come to the Bill with an open mind - open to the extent that he is convinced our criminal justice system must achieve a number of complementary objectives.

To clarify for Deputy Niall Collins, I stated at the outset that the Minister for Justice and Equality is chairing a Justice and Home Affairs Council in Brussels and consequently could not be present.

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