Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I wish to commend Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan, her team, Fr. Cullen and PREDA on putting together this Bill. The Bill seeks to regulate and restrict, where appropriate, sex offenders from travelling abroad in the interests of the common good and to protect vulnerable persons from serious harm outside Ireland where sex trafficking and child prostitution may be prevalent. The Act seeks to amend the Sex Offenders Act 2001 to empower judges with the option to impose a travel restriction on a case-by-case basis where the deciding judge believes the restriction is warranted. That is important because it is not proposing a blanket ban.

I am aware that in other countries, restrictions of this nature can be used for soccer supporters or other supporters who have known records in terms of actions abroad. As far as I am aware, it has also been used in some cases where ISIS or other such groups are moving throughout Europe. They can be looked at as an example of how this can be enacted.

To deal with the Bill section by section, the first section deals with protecting vulnerable children in jurisdictions that, unfortunately, do not have the same protections for children as there are in this State. That is not to say we do not have much to do. We still have a lot to do. I refer in particular to those jurisdictions where there is criminality, the judicial system is corrupted and families are vulnerable in that people with money can literally buy off their children. It maintains the constitutional rights of a person convicted of a crime and it empowers judges to impose travel limitations, not prohibition, on a case-by-case basis.

All the points have been made by earlier speakers about the way this type of exploitation by paedophiles who have been convicted of serious crimes are able to access countries that have low restrictions and low levels of border protection. It is very important that as a nation and as a legislative body, we should be able to examine this Bill and tease out how best to bring in those restrictions.

I have a problem with imposing travel bans and so on because I believe we must be very careful in that regard. However, the Bill tries to deal with that. I will be directed by Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan as to whether she will accept the Government's amendment but if the Government is serious about trying to deal with this issue, and particularly with Australia's record and its response to the number of paedophiles travelling to eastern Asia, I believe it can be done.

I would welcome it if the Government was approaching this honestly and eagerly to try to deal with the issue, but if it is only trying to push this issue down the line again. I ask the Government not to do so and to support the Bill. I favour going in the direction of Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan's Bill.

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