Ken O'Flynn (Cork North-Central, Independent Ireland Party)

I would like to be associated with the words of welcome. I assure the Taoiseach that I will be shouting for Cork and I always shout for Cork in this House. Yesterday's Courts Service reports reveal a 13.6% increase in new sexual offences cases, a figure that all of us in this House should be deeply concerned about. Ireland's population at approximately 5.4 million, almost a decade ahead of the earlier demographic projections, shows that our justice system remains starkly opaque. We do not publish anonymised data on nationality or immigration status of individuals convicted of serious crimes, including sexual or violent crimes. This data is collected and collated but is withheld from public scrutiny. In the United Kingdom, it is known that one in four sex crimes are committed by foreign nationals, according to Women's Safety Initiative and The Daily Telegraph. Will the Government implement legislation similar to that in the United Kingdom, Denmark and the rest of the European Union for the collation and distribution of the data?

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