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

I thank Deputy Kenny for raising this issue.

I am fully committed to establishing the new parole board as soon as possible. This is an important programme for Government commitment and is something I have identified as a priority action for my Department. Government has supported this commitment with funding in our first budget to make sure this priority is delivered in 2021.

As the Deputy will be aware, the new statutory parole board will considerably improve the system as it currently operates. The Parole Act 2019 puts the parole board on an independent statutory footing and sets out clear and transparent criteria for how the board will reach its decisions, which will be independent of the Minister of the day. This includes what factors will be taken into account in making those decisions, who may make submissions, which includes the victim’s right to make a formal submission to the board, as well as a number of other details.

The Act also increases the length of the sentence which must be served by life sentenced prisoners before they are eligible to be considered for parole.

The move from the current model to the model set out in the 2019 Act is complex and a significant amount of planning is required to allow for its establishment. For example, substantial preparatory work is needed to analyse and document the new legal processes that will give effect to the provisions of the Act. The Deputy will appreciate this is essential to reduce the risk of successful judicial reviews by those who may be impacted.

There are also a number of practical steps required before it will be possible to commence the Act and establish the parole board. These include the selection of the board members, the appointment of a chief executive and of staff, and securing an appropriate premises for the new body. A project board has been established in my Department to drive forward and carry out this important work and ensure that all necessary arrangements are made as soon as possible.

Budget 2021 has provided a significantly increased funding allocation of €1.3 million to allow the project board to take forward its work and move us from planning to the implementation phase of the 2019 Act. To support this work further, additional staff have been assigned to implement this project on a priority basis, in addition to the seven existing Parole Board staff who will continue to support the existing board.

A critical path for delivery of this significant priority project is currently being developed with a view to ensuring full commencement of the Parole Act, which I believe will be achieved in 2021.

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