Niall Ó Donnghaile (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Gabhaim buíochas leis an Aire as ucht teacht isteach chun labhairt ar an Chéim seo don Bhille. The Acting Chairperson might forgive me if I smile the whole way through the course of this contribution because I have just been able to book my vaccine for tomorrow in the North. The process has just opened for my age bracket, although I will not say which bracket it is. Nevertheless, it is good and I am happy.

As colleagues have acknowledged across the House, the purpose of this Bill is to introduce preliminary trial hearings. Many of the features of the Bill are good and positive and Sinn Féin supports them. They are needed for a number of reasons. As people have said, some trials are becoming increasingly complex and lengthy due to technological advances and legal innovation. An informed and relaxed jury is an important part of the justice system. Part 3 of the Bill deals with the provision of information to juries to assist them in their deliberations. This arises from the Law Reform Commission and its 2013 report on jury service. It made a number of recommendations, including that the source from which jury panels would be drawn would be broad and efficient, that jurors would be funded for their service and to make it easier for disabled people to serve on juries through making court buildings accessible and disabled-friendly.

A provision to allow some arguments to take place before a trial is also welcome. Section 6(6) states that where an accused has not been arraigned, the judge may direct the accused to be arraigned at the start of a pretrial hearing. If we are serious about the presumption of innocence, that provision should be tightened up. Also, if the prosecution seeks a pretrial hearing, it seems only fair that all disclosures should be provided to the defence before that takes place.

The Bill also provides for hearings on matters such as the availability of witnesses and issues related to discovery. The discovery aspect is particularly important due to developments in technology and complex books of evidence. The report on the future of policing envisions better Garda resources in cybercrime. Complex discovery and admissibility matters are well suited to pretrial hearings and it is important to maintain a balance between prosecution and defence at all times. The Bill will give a right to request a hearing, the sharing of information and notification of the use of expert witnesses.

The availability of witnesses and their suitability or otherwise to take the stand is also key. There is unfortunately a disturbing trend where young people under the age of 18 are witnesses to high-profile criminal and violent crimes. In those circumstances the causes of crime are rarely addressed, and neither are the need for early interventions and targeted resources, as well as other matters like community policing, education, housing, social care and community-led initiatives such as restorative justice practices.

A fit-for-purpose youth justice system is badly needed and we do not have one at present. In a report involving the University of Limerick it was stated that 1,000 children were involved in or in danger of being involved in criminal gangs. Although the transfer of youth justice functions from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth to the Department of Justice may deliver developments, it carries a risk. That risk is that young adults and children might be treated within the same resources and processes as adults, which would be entirely inappropriate. A stand-alone youth agency properly resourced is crucial.

The Bill before Members will be one part of a solution but wider policy and societal issues must be also be considered and addressed as we move forward. The Bill contains a welcome provision to extend legal aid services to cover costs incurred during pretrial hearings.Some judges can be difficult about extending legal aid certificates, as some of our learned colleagues across the House will probably recognise. The legal aid threshold should be raised because the working poor are sometimes unable to fund and raise defences for themselves.

I welcome section 9, which relates to the power to exclude members of the public from preliminary hearings in, for example, high-profile sex crime trials. This is to be welcomed.

It is important we have an efficient justice system which can protect and prosecute. The Bill will help to streamline and speed up court proceedings. Backlogs and delays, as the Minister well knows, help criminal gangs and often delay justice for those who have been wronged. That aspect of the Bill, if delivered effectively and efficiently, which we all hope will be the case, is to be very much welcomed.