Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I agree with the Minister on that point. He is correct that if any person coming out of prison can get a job, it can reduce enormously the prospect that he or she will become involved with criminality again. Unfortunately, however, the statistics reveal something more serious. The Irish Prison Service data reveals a huge high rate of recidivism of individuals who are committing burglaries. We must put forward some form of deterrent approach to the issue, as well as the admirable solutions the Minister has identified. We need to see whether we change the sentencing process. If an individual is involved in a series of burglaries that have been committed over a period of time, and where it looks as though there will be no change in that individual's behaviour, we need to look at whether stronger sentencing is required for that person.

We also need to recognise that the primary purpose of burglary is to try to increase the wealth of the burglar. We need to think about imposing fines and sanctions that can be properly levied on individuals who have been convicted of these offences. There is more to this than simply trying to remedy the individual and in trying to put him or her back on the path to a proper life. Unfortunately, there are some cases where we cannot do this and we need to have stronger sanctions for them.

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