Paul Daly (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Tánaiste to the House and thank her for her synopsis of the Bill. Fianna Fáil welcomes and will be supporting this Bill aiming to strengthen the bail laws because we believe that the existing bail laws are far too lax. There have been many serious crimes committed by people on bail. The figures are frightening and startling, when one goes through a brief synopsis of them. CSO statistics state that in the last four years 84 people have died at the hands of people on bail, an average of eight people per annum, coupled with the fact that in the last decade 285 people are suspected of committing sexual offences while on bail, including 18 last year, along with 124 suspects accused of kidnapping while on bail.

The highest number of crimes committed by suspects on bail fall under offences against the Government, justice procedures and organisation of crime, at a total of 70,169 in the last ten years. Theft-related offences are the second most common at 54,492, followed by public order offences at 48,966. In total, 246,843 crimes were committed in the last decade by suspects on bail, the equivalent of 474 crimes per week. Anyone reading these figures and statistics who has an issue with strengthening the bail laws would have to seriously question themselves.

I will not go through everything the Minister has gone through, section by section in the Bill. Under section 5 the fact that the court can take into account the number and frequency of previous convictions and the likelihood of danger to a person or a community, or relating to previous incidents, in refusing or placing conditions on bail, has to be welcomed.

With regard to section 6, increasing the range of conditions attached to bail, prohibiting the accused from making any contact with the victim or victim's family, or prohibiting driving in the case of a road traffic offence, and affording An Garda Síochána the power to arrest without warrant, is a very important condition but also a very tricky one. Senator McDowell and others here would be more legally-minded than I, but it is hard, even with the new Bill, to justify or to be confident that one is legally correct in arresting anybody who one presumes has the intention to offend. What is stated in the Bill is that the intention of committing further crime allows for arrest without warrant. I would be sceptical and wary about that section.

Section 7 allows for electronic monitoring as a condition to be applied on application from the prosecution. I welcome this provision and electronic monitoring is something I advocate. I would like to ask the Minister however, if the financial resources will be available if and when this Bill becomes law and the Judiciary and An Garda Síochána decide to enforce this monitoring. We have had some use of electronic monitoring in the past at exorbitant expense, so I ask the Minister if the resources will be made available for its introduction.

In section 8, it is welcome that the court can consider evidence from the victim before offering bail.This is where interference is most likely to be highlighted concerning the accused, when evidence can be taken from the victim. In general, the Bill is to be welcomed with amendments, which include the change in public order legislation with regard to the detention of intoxicated people. Hitherto, gardaí were in a vulnerable position whereby they had to use the presumed common law of duty when detaining people whom they considered a danger to themselves or society due to intoxication. Now, however, by virtue of the fact that this provision will be introduced in the legislation, gardaí will be legally entitled to apprehend somebody for up to six hours. That must also be welcomed as it takes gardaí out of that precarious position.

We will be supporting the Bill, which is welcome. It is long overdue because, given the statistics, it is frightening to see the level of crime, devastation, destruction, pain, sorrow and grief that has been caused by people while on bail. In many cases the State gets the blame when crimes are committed by those who have been convicted and are then released on bail.

I welcome the Bill and thank the Minister for attending the House.