Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

In the first instance, I thank the ten Senators for their contributions. They were all excellent and I compliment Senator Martin Conway and his colleagues on tabling the motion which was presented to the Cabinet this morning by the Minister, Deputy Alan Shatter. He asked members of the Cabinet for their approval, which they gave. Consequently, the motion has been accepted by the Cabinet and everything else will flow from there.

I am speaking today on behalf of the Minister, Deputy Shatter. He would like to thank the Senators for raising the matter today. It is an important topic which the Minister has been considering alongside the many other reforms of our courts system that are already under way. That reflects some of the remarks made by many Senators that it should not be taken in isolation and that other measures and supports should be considered.

Community courts are locally focused courts that attempt to harness the power of the justice system to address local problems. They can take many forms but all focus on creative partnerships and problem-solving. They strive to create new relationships both within the justice system and with external stakeholders such as residents and the business community. Such courts are innovative in their approach to public safety and to addressing problems in the communities.

As Senators will be aware, a number of jurisdictions have developed what are sometimes referred to as "problem solving" courts. Models include community courts, drug courts and restorative programmes. These courts can vary in character but generally incorporate a combination of sanction for the crime, assistance in rehabilitation and reparation to either the victim or the community in which the offence took place. They combine punishment with help such as drug treatment or mental health counselling.

The community court model in the United States works on the basis that courts should be problem-solving, and should not merely be administering justice. In general terms, there are five key elements to the problem-solving approach: a tailored approach to justice; creative partnerships; informed decision-making; accountability; and a focus on results.

Members are aware that in 2007, the National Crime Council published a report entitled Problem Solving Justice - The Case for Community Courts in Ireland to which many Senators referred. The report examined the position in the United States and in the United Kingdom to see how these courts work in practice and made recommendations for the establishment of a court on a pilot basis. To date, these recommendations have not been implemented; this may have been due, in part, to the fact that such courts are potentially resource intensive.

However, the Minister, Deputy Shatter, believes it is now time to fully explore whether community courts can be of benefit within the Irish criminal justice system. The Minister is not alone in this view. Members will be aware of the recent work of the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, which held a public consultation process on community courts on 29 January last to which many Senators referred. I would like to commend the committee's Chairman, Deputy David Stanton, for his excellent work in pursuing the idea of a having a community court in Ireland.

Earlier that same day, the Dublin City Business Association held a seminar on community courts. Invited international speakers with experience in the establishment and operation of community courts participated in both events, and their input proved to be very informative. The knowledge gained from those presentations and the surrounding debates will be further considered. It is very beneficial to draw on international experience which can help to broaden insights we might have on what works and what does not work.

The Dublin City Business Association must be commended for its proactive approach, and it is also good to know that the business community is open to a partnership approach in dealing with anti-social behaviour in the city centre. It is also important to state that, generally, Dublin city centre is safe and it is a small number of offenders, usually those with particular problems such as alcohol or drug abuse, that give rise to a significant portion of the anti-social behaviour. The community court approach will provide an integrated problem solving solution to dealing with such repeat offenders and will also provide a rapid response to dealing with the type of one-off offending that can occur in the city such as public order offending.

The Minister, Deputy Shatter, has already given this topic some thought. In December 2013, he sought the views of the President of the District Court on his proposal to establish a community court in Dublin city centre and she has indicated that the Judiciary is positively disposed towards such an initiative. She also welcomed the opportunity for further judicial engagement in developing an appropriate model in Dublin.

An initial project is envisaged in Dublin city centre operating on a pilot basis where stakeholders will engage in partnerships, in conjunction with the local business community, to progress the project. The project must operate in a fully integrated way. I am informed that the Minister, Deputy Shatter, is initially suggesting a pilot in the Dublin city centre because he wants to evaluate how the community court model will work in the Irish context.

Not all community courts have been a success. In the recent seminars, we heard that where such courts are not successful, it can be difficult to establish why that may be the case. The Minister is interested in hearing more about such experiences so that we can analyse the various reasons they were not successful and benefit from lessons learned.

The Minister believes appropriate planning is the key to getting an effective court in place. Therefore, before moving to establish the court, a considerable amount of preparatory work needs to be undertaken in collaboration with all stakeholders. In the current climate, each of the stakeholders involved is operating with fewer resources so the preparation and planning stages of the project are essential to ensure that the resources involved are used effectively. The Minister is conscious that scarce resources must be used wisely and effectively. In addition, following the establishment of a pilot project, it would be important to have proper monitoring and robust evaluation so that we can see if the community court is delivering the necessary results.

Part of the planning process will involve determining the type of offences and offenders suitable to be dealt with by a community court model. In its 2007 report, the National Crime Council considered the type of offences that might be dealt with, such as drunk in public, disorderly conduct, illegal street trading, certain assault cases, criminal damage, theft, drug use and handling stolen property cases. In line with the Minister's own thinking, the council also recommended, in the first instance, that a community court be established in the inner city of Dublin to deal with quality of life offences. It was recommended that the caseload be built up on an incremental basis. It was also considered essential that all services, such as drug and alcohol addiction counselling, be available on site. The co-operation of the stakeholders providing the necessary services, such as education, health and treatment services, will be essential and a full review of the necessary supports that need to be in place will have to be undertaken in consultation with stakeholders.

Members will be aware that we already have a Drug Treatment Court operating in Dublin. This court was designed as an alternative measure for dealing with less serious and non-violent drug offenders. The Drug Treatment Court shares some similar characteristics to the community court model but the community court would involve a more integrated response from State agencies to offending and it also places an emphasis on community restitution.

While a community court represents an innovative collaborative approach to dealing with offenders, it is a prerequisite that whatever model is decided on must conform to Ireland's constitutional requirements and must also respect the constitutional standards of due process.

I mentioned earlier the importance of the planning stage of this project and it will be essential to fully consider: what kind of court we want; what types of offences we want to be dealt with in this way; what type of offender can benefit from the community court and how should the selection process be managed to ensure effective operation of this resource intensive option; where should the court be located and can the necessary facilities be harnessed by co-ordination measures or do they need to be located in close proximity; how should the court be funded and should the Exchequer fund the traditional criminal justice aspects of the court's facilities and should the business community, which is advocating the establishment of these types of courts, contribute towards the provision of some necessary services, such as counselling or mediation; and if would it be desirable to have legislation to underpin the courts' operations.

I stress again the importance of proper planning and ensuring that the resources which will need to be dedicated to this project by the various stakeholders will used effectively. We also need to ensure that we get the right type of court to deal with the particular issues which need to be addressed in the Dublin city centre area. The Minister looks forward to working with interested stakeholders, including the Judiciary, relevant agencies as well as with the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality and Defence in developing this initiative. Further research will be necessary and the Minister intends to request officials in the Department of Justice and Equality and the Courts Service to look at other community court models, in particular those operating in similar environments to the Irish justice systems, so as to identify the key elements required to establish a successful court in this country. When the matter has been fully examined, the Minister intends to bring forward proposals on the development of a pilot community court in Dublin city centre.

This was an extremely interesting debate. I agree fully with the thrust of the motion and the decision of the Cabinet in regard to this matter.

As well as the other items mentioned, it is something we might look at in terms of community policing. In 2005, we introduced community policing on a legislative basis. We located it with local authorities through joint policing committees. We established community policing forums and involved the local communities in the structure. It is extraordinarily successful in the north inner city, where Senator Norris and I are based, and Store Street station, in particular, has championed it.. I see it as an organic development to move from community policing to community courts and from community policing to community sanction and other areas of administration and treatment. A connection can usefully be made so that it is truly a local initiative.

The Minister's reply refers to the business community. I am associated with the reply and I am now adding a few words of my own. We introduced the local authority into community policing as a mainstay and all the meetings that take place are held under the auspices of the local authority, the Garda Síochána and the local community. With new initiatives on local authority development after the next elections, perhaps this area can be usefully explored with real local authority participation in local issues so that there is a local initiative its own right.

I generally agree with Senator Norris but I disagree in respect of the Criminal Assets Bureau, which was not the creation of Tony Gregory but of myself and Deputy Róisín Shortall. We came up with the idea and we were about to hold a press conference on the afternoon that Veronica Guerin was killed. I was chairman of the policy committee of the Labour Party at the time. We passed on the material to Deputy Ruairí Quinn, who was then Minister for Finance, and Nora Owen. The Proceeds of Crime Act and the Criminal Assets Bureau were included in the next legislation that arose. It is a small matter. I thank Senators for their excellent contributions and I commend Senator Martin Conway on the work he has done in putting in place an exciting and innovative initiative.