Noel Grealish (Galway West, Independent) | Oireachtas source

In the past ten years just over 250,000 crimes have been committed by people while out on bail. The total is 250,149 to be exact. The people in question include murderers, rapists, robbers and burglars who have wreaked havoc and brought terror to our society. Between 2006 and 2015 people out on bail were responsible for 89 murders, 237 serious sexual offences, including rape, 50,000 thefts, the same number of public order offences and 18,000 burglaries. It gets worse. Figures from the CSO show that last year alone, almost 26,000 crimes were committed by people out on bail, a disturbing increase of 11% on the figure for the previous year. It is equivalent to 500 crimes per week being carried out by people who have already been charged with a criminal offence, in respect of which they are awaiting their day in court. They were apprehended by the Garda, charged and then released while a file was being sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions. A file could be with the Director of Public Prosecutions for months. In the meantime, the people in question are reoffending. It is very frustrating for gardaí and exceptionally upsetting for the victims of crime who see the criminal walking down the street and feel intimidated and fearful as a result. It is time the bail laws were radically reformed. It is time the people in question were immediately put behind bars. Is this being deliberately permitted because we do not have the space in prisons to put these vicious criminals away? I am not talking about people who carry out petty crimes but about murderers, rapists and vicious attackers. They should be held on remand while their files are being considered by the Director of Public Prosecutions.

I have received from the latest CSO figures for the first quarter of 2016. They paint an equally depressing picture, with a total of 6,049 crimes being committed where the suspected offender was out on bail for other offences. Meanwhile, these are the people who are enjoying free legal aid at taxpayers' expense, even in the most cut and dried cases. The people want to know when this ridiculous state of affairs will be brought to an end. They want to know when we can expect to have realistic laws which will threaten severe penalties for those who reoffend while out on bail. I am aware of the Bail Bill which is included in the legislative programme and in respect of which the justice committee finalised its pre-legislative scrutiny report on 11 November 2015. Will the Taoiseach give a commitment to the people who are the victims of serious and vicious crimes that he will take these vicious criminals off the streets, hold them on remand and not allow them back onto the streets to terrorise and reoffend?

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