Averil Power (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister to the House. I support the general comments by Senators van Turnhout and Ó Clochartaigh. The Bill is a major step forward and a positive initiative to give people a second chance. It will ensure that people are not left for a lifetime with a minor offence hanging over them, making it difficult for them to access employment. Some very good points have been raised by speakers about whether we are even at that stage. However, it is a progressive initiative. As Senator van Turnhout said, we need to learn from the English system which as been in place for a long time. We need to ensure the balance is correct.

I refer to section 15 of the Criminal Justice Act 1999, which provides for very severe penalties for possession of drugs. A young person in his or her late teens or early 20s may have been charged with possession of drugs but may then turn his or her life around. I know people who have gone to great lengths to do so. Extra rehabilitation programmes are available in my own area. I presented certificates last year at the Laneview programme in Darndale to people who have spent serious time in prison. They got into trouble with drugs and their lives spiralled out of control. Now they have taken steps to turn their lives around. They have joined education and work experience programmes in an effort to build a better life for themselves and for their families. I agree it is better for all of us and safer for society as a whole if people are supported and are given the opportunity for rehabilitation and a second chance. I am concerned that a person who may have served a prison sentence for a drugs offence but is able to prove that he or she has not been in trouble for a long time may fall foul of the 12-month limit in this legislation.

I raise the same issue and seek the Minister's guidance on it. Does he genuinely believe the balance is right? I am not sure about the four year proposal, but the two years proposal appears to be very reasonable. The statistics given by Senator Jillian van Turnhout that support that proposition are also reasonable. I look forward to the Minister's response.