Barry Andrews (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

The Minster for Justice, Equality and Law Reform has delegated to me, as Minister of State at the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform with responsibility for children and youth affairs, the powers conferred on him under the Children Act 2001, as amended. The matter raised therefore falls under my responsibility.

The National Youth Justice Strategy 2008-2010 sets out plans for co-ordinated programmes and services in the area of youth justice which will be delivered through a number of agencies, including the Irish youth justice service of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform; the Department of Education and Science; the Department of Health and Children; the HSE; the Garda Síochána; the Courts Service; the probation and welfare service; the Children Act advisory board and the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht affairs. The net effect of the strategy is to ensure a more co-ordinated strategic approach to service delivery, make better use of existing resources and deliver better outcomes for children in trouble with the law and the community in general.

The strategy is being progressed at national level by the national youth justice oversight group, which was established to facilitate the cross-agency collaboration required. The oversight group, which comprises members from each of the key agencies, is scheduled to report to the Cabinet sub-committee on social inclusion in mid-2009. One of the strategy's high level goals is "to divert offending by diverting young people from offending behaviour". There is a range of initiatives to divert young people from offending behaviour. The first is the Garda diversion programme, which provides an opportunity to divert young offenders from criminal activity and includes a restorative justice aspect. It operates on a nationwide basis under the supervision and direction of the Garda National Office for Children and Youth Affairs.

The diversion programme provides that, in certain circumstances, a young person under 18 years of age, who freely accepts responsibility for a criminal incident, may be cautioned as an alternative to prosecution. In more serious cases, the young person may be placed under the supervision of a Garda juvenile liaison officer, who is responsible for administering the programme at local level. It has proven to be highly successful in diverting young people away from crime by offering guidance and support to young people and their families. The Children Act 2001 put the programme on a statutory basis. As of 31 January 2009, there were 109 gardaí operating as juvenile liaison officers and many other gardaí are engaged in liaising with young people on a day to day basis. In addition, young persons probation, a division of the probation service, has been established to deal with young people who come before the courts.

Garda youth diversion projects, which operate as a resource to the diversion programme, are funded by the Irish youth justice service and administered by the Garda Síochána. These youth projects are community-based, multi-agency crime prevention initiatives which seek to divert young people from becoming involved, or further involved, in criminal or anti-social behaviour. They achieve this aim by providing suitable activities to facilitate personal development, promote civic responsibility and improve long-term employability prospects. By doing this, the projects also contribute to improving the quality of life within communities and enhancing Garda-community relations.

There are 100 Garda youth diversion projects in operation throughout the country, including two in County Donegal, one in Falcarragh and one in Raphoe. An application to set up a Garda youth diversion project in Gweedore was received by the Garda Commissioner. However, there are 39 similar applications for new projects throughout the country currently with the Commissioner. These applications were held in abeyance, initially to allow the significant 2007 increase of 29 new projects to settle down and become established and, subsequently, because of the growing uncertainty over the public finances. The position now is that, in view of the current budgetary situation, it is not possible to commit to any new projects at this stage. Therefore, the primary focus of the Irish youth justice service and the Garda Síochána will be on ensuring the quality and effectiveness of the existing projects.

The first step in reviewing the effectiveness of the Garda youth diversion projects was undertaken in 2008 when a baseline analysis of each of the 100 projects was undertaken by the Irish youth justice service. The report of this analysis is nearing completion and I expect to receive it soon.

It is important to recognise that the national youth justice strategy operates in tandem with the National Children's Strategy 2000-2010. There are currently four pilot local children's services committees, including one in County Donegal, helping to implement the national children's strategy. These are multi-agency committees, chaired by the HSE and they include both local gardaí and probation representatives. They are helping to achieve a co-ordinated and integrated service for children in the counties concerned.