Michael D'Arcy (Wexford, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

On Committee Stage, a number of Senators, in particular Senators Ó Donnghaile and Ruane, mentioned the need for the sentencing guidelines and information committee to have a monitoring role in respect of any guidelines which may be adopted by the council. An undertaking to consider this matter was given and, as a result, I have decided to introduce amendment No. 27 which includes among the functions of the committee the monitoring of the operation of sentencing guidelines. This will allow the committee to have a degree of oversight as to how the guidelines are functioning in practice and will be a useful tool in the context of reviewing the efficacy of those guidelines.

Amendment No. 40 parallels amendment No. 43, which we have already discussed in the context of the personal injuries guidelines committee. The provision in the Bill which is the subject of the proposed amendment requires a court to have regard to sentencing guidelines relevant to the proceedings before it, unless the court is satisfied that to do so would be contrary to the interests of justice. By virtue of the amendment, the reasons for departing from those guidelines will have to be stated by the court in its decision. This will facilitate an assessment of the extent to which the guidelines are being followed and will feed usefully into the review process. It will also allow for greater public insight into why it is that a particular sentence is arrived at in an individual case.

There is a further amendment in the name of Senators Ruane, Higgins and Kelleher which would enable the sentencing guidelines and information committee to conduct public consultations on draft sentencing guidelines. This is a power which the committee already has and, for that reason, I am reluctant to accept this amendment.