Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I am glad to have an opportunity to speak on this legislation. Similar to my colleague, Deputy Costello, who just spoke, I believe we have a particular situation arising in the aftermath of the lockdown that is more serious than it was previously. There are a number of issues we need to take into account and a number of initiatives we need to take. This legislation is one of them. We have to learn how best to deal with this matter. Confrontation is not the way to do so, in the first instance. We have to establish a system that young people will have confidence in and can approach on the basis that they will come to no harm, their circumstances will improve, they can rely on it and they will not become victims of the circumstances.

There is, however, a need to take people off the street. The situation, as it is now developing now, is that many people are concerned for their safety just walking along the footpath. That should not be the case. We can say that the youngsters concerned are deprived and have not had a proper chance, which is true. However, the fact is people, including other children, women and older people, are also being deprived by virtue of having their rights impinged upon, in a serious fashion, to the detriment of society and the good name of the country.

We should concentrate, in the first instance, on ensuring that a proper service is available and gardaí are specifically trained to deal with such circumstances as they emerge. This is not a normal situation. Gardaí may well be faced with youngsters who are confrontational. That will not solve the problem or make it any better. It will not to solve the problem for the Garda, society or the youngsters themselves. We need to put a lot of thought into how we deal with the issue but we have to deal with it.

Another group we need to recognise - I have raised it on many occasions in the past - is first-time offenders. This is assuming they have not gone past the stage where they can be hauled ashore. We need to ensure first-time offenders are treated properly and there is a way to bring them onto the straight and narrow path. However, if they go to prison, it is hugely important that they do not find themselves in the company of hardened criminals on a daily basis and subject to the same regime all the time. They should get the first possible opportunity to have their educational needs and recreational needs met, and to have their character built up within the prison system. In other words, they should be able to become confident that society is not their enemy, they can improve society and that society can contribute to their situation in a meaningful way that is neither confrontational nor aggressive. That has to be done.

I followed many questions over the years on this subject. I discovered – although I do not know how much has changed - that certain groups are formed within the prison system. There may be an attitude that allows these groups to dominate who gets educational training and who gets proper treatment inside the system. It can deprive those who need that training most to ensure they do not fall further and further down the criminal league or create a problem for themselves that is much more serious than mere delinquency, for want of a better description.

There are three elements to this. First, we need to deal with it. Second, we need to deal with it in an appropriate fashion. Third, in the event of all systems failing and the youngsters finding themselves in prison or juvenile prison, we need to ensure they do not fall under the influence of professional criminals who will adopt them, recruit them and use them for their own ends in pursuit of their own objectives every time. It is not just that they are in danger doing it. It always happens and will happen every time. Those kids then find themselves in a situation where there is no redemption for them in the future. They are ostracised by everybody. They feel themselves rejected by society, and they are. They feel that there is no hope for or faith in them.

We need to have a system that responds to the situation, from the point of view of the youngsters and society. Society should not harshly treat people who find themselves on the wrong side of the tracks. It is important it does not do so. There is everything to be gained from approaching that kind of situation in a thoughtful, caring manner, which will be of benefit to society

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