Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. On Second Stage I spoke to support the concept of the Bill. My party and the previous Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Dermot Ahern, did much preparatory work on it. I rise to speak very briefly in support of the amendments in the names of Senator van Turnhout and Sinn Féin. The Government is erring on the side of caution in the Bill. It is being overcautious with regard to the 12 month period. The thrust of our criminal and penal system is rehabilitation. If we can save 5% of the souls who go through our criminal justice system and rehabilitate them so they can start a new life, as outlined in the account read by Senator Cullinane, it would be a great step.

I was fortunate to visit, along with other members of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, the open prison system in Finland to see how it deals with crime, prison and restorative justice. It has a similar population to Ireland and has 1,000 fewer people in prison. Its open prison system is something we should examine more closely as is the way those interested in reforming their lives and rehabilitation can go back to college. The concept pursued in particular by the former Minister, Michael McDowell, of building a superprison to lock everybody up might give the notion to society that we are tackling crime, but in effect building extra prison spaces goes in the wrong direction. It is like some of the work done by the Minister of State in the area of mental health. It was a very brave decision to place people in communities rather than in grey forlorn terrible buildings sometimes for years on end. We are making progress; it is not a utopia but we are going in the right direction. In this regard I support the previous speakers on the thrust of their debate.

Senator van Turnhout seeks a period of two years. There should be consensus and a middle ground. Perhaps the guillotine should not be brought down on this aspect of the legislation as it might be worth considering on Report Stage. Almost everybody who has spoken on the Bill in the House is primarily in agreement with the thrust of the legislation. The idea of the Bill is a great concept and I am also of this view. We are being overcautious and we should be a little braver. It would be better for society if we moved in the direction suggested by Senators van Turnhout and Cullinane.