Dáil debates

Wednesday, 27 January 2016

Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill 2012 [Seanad]: Report Stage

 

4:05 pm

Photo of David StantonDavid Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

One country recognises the spent convictions of another country. I wonder whether efforts will be made to engage with other jurisdictions in order that spent convictions here can be recognised in other jurisdictions and vice versa. That would be useful to know because, if that were the case, it might make these amendments redundant.

A friend of mine in another jurisdiction contacted me recently. He was about to be promoted to a serious position in his company and he needed a police record from here. He was very concerned because when he was a youngster of 18 or 19 years of age he had a conviction for possession of a small amount of cannabis. He was concerned that this would come against him and he asked me what he could do about it. I told him the best thing he could do was to go to his employer and tell him. He did so and there was no issue.

The amendments Deputy Mitchell has put together aim to ensure that if there is a spent conviction in this country and a request from another jurisdiction comes to the authorities here, then the authorities do not divulge anything. I understand from looking at the website of the Irish Penal Reform Trust that, if required by the immigration authority of a country that an Irish person wishes to enter, that person would have to declare all spent convictions unless there is an agreement between the two countries.

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