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

The Deputy will be aware that sentencing is a complex matter, but people want to see some consistency in sentencing. I want to see that as well. The mechanism by which we are seeking to achieve this was set out in the Judicial Council Act 2019, under which there is a procedure for the Judiciary to set out sentencing guidelines. I look forward to receiving those sentencing guidelines from the Judiciary, as they will improve consistency throughout the course of imposing sentences.

We also need to be aware that concurrent and consecutive sentences are options available to judges. Under our law, consecutive sentences can be imposed by the courts. In fact, the Oireachtas has mandated that, in certain circumstances, there should be consecutive sentences. For instance, in reference to Deputy Carthy's question earlier, if people commit a serious offence while on bail, the law dictates that they receive a consecutive sentence. That is provided for in the Criminal Justice Acts. It is also the case that, if people commit an offence while serving a sentence for another offence, for example, if they are out on temporary release, that should result in a consecutive sentence as well.

I appreciate the concern Deputies and victims and their families have when they see a concurrent sentence being imposed in respect of different offences. The message that goes out is that there was no real sentence for the offence committed against the victim because the person was already serving a sentence in any event. That is not what the law seeks to achieve. Judges sometimes look at the issues in terms of the totality of what occurred. In circumstances where there is one offence and a series of convictions in respect of it, concurrent sentences are probably appropriate. However, where the offences are separate, it is my view that consecutive offences are appropriate.

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