Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is something that has taken some time and, therefore, I assure the Deputy again that I have asked for an update on the timeline of this and I have asked that it be progressed as soon as possible. I will finish outlining some of the areas included in the legislation. We will have enhanced supervision of high-risk offenders including, in limited circumstances, the electronic monitoring of offenders subject to post-release supervision orders, the placing on a legislative footing of assessment teams to assess and manage the risk posed by sex offenders and provisions whereby a court can prohibit a sex offender from working with children which is particularly important. We will have provision for a statutory basis for the necessary disclosure of information relating to a high-risk offender on the sex offenders register. The information about any offender which may be disclosed includes the name, address and threat posed by the offender. There is, of course, a need for balance in these measures and, therefore, it is intended that the disclosure would be made to the minimum number of people necessary to avert a serious risk to safety.

I understand the Deputy's concerns but as I outlined earlier there is legislation in place at the moment, under which if a sex offender is sentenced to a term of imprisonment of two or more years, he or she will be subject to notification requirements for a period of indefinite duration. While the measures may not be strict enough at the moment there are a significant number of measures.

See this speech in context