James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senator Ruane for putting forward very cogent amendments. I certainly heard her very strong arguments in regard to the purpose of the amendments. I will not be accepting the amendments and I will set out why. I note amendments Nos. 1 to 8, inclusive, have been taken together. Amendments Nos. 1 to 8, inclusive, provide for the further amendment of sentencing provisions in the Firearms Acts 1925 and 1964, the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977, the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act 1990 and the Criminal Justice Act 2007. The effect of each of these amendments is to repeal various provisions for presumptive minimum sentences in the Act concerned. A presumptive minimum sentence directs a court to impose at a minimum a specified term of imprisonment unless the court is of the view that exceptional circumstances require a lower sentence.

In the case of amendments Nos. 1, 3 and 6, the presumptive minimum sentences concerned are for imprisonment of ten years for certain firearms or drug offences, while in the case of amendments Nos. 4, 5 and 7, the presumptive minimum sentences concerned are for imprisonment of five years for certain firearms offences. In the case of amendment No. 8, the presumptive minimum sentence is for three quarters of the maximum sentence provided by law for each of the serious offences listed in Schedule 2 to the Criminal Justice Act 2007. The amendments would not repeal all penalties for the various offences involved. While the presumptive minimum sentences would be repealed under these amendments, there would still be a maximum sentence in each section for the offence concerned, which would be subject to judicial discretion.

I have acknowledged in the course of Dáil and Seanad debates on this Bill the important role that is carried out by the Judiciary in the administration of justice. As has been noted previously, including by the Supreme Court in its judgment on the Ellis case, sentencing always involves consideration by the Judiciary of the gravity of the offence, the circumstances, the personal situation of the accused and any mitigating factors. I must note, however, that as I outlined in earlier debates in both Houses, this Bill is limited in scope and is designed to rectify the constitutional infirmity identified in the Ellis case by the repeal of all mandatory minimum sentences for second or subsequent offences. It does not set out to make further policy and legislative changes in the area of sentencing for criminal offences. The Bill is urgently needed in its current form in order to clarify the legal position with regard to the issues raised in the Ellis judgment, which was issued by the Supreme Court in 2019. The Bill is not intended to be a vehicle for a much broader set of legal changes in the area of sentencing. Existing penalties for presumptive minimum sentences are not affected by the Ellis judgment and remain valid.

It is also worth considering that there are likely to be a wide range views in this House and elsewhere as to whether such sentences are appropriate in the case of each particular offence concerned. A balanced view is needed which would also take into account the right of the Oireachtas to express its view on what certain sentencing thresholds should be, having regard to the seriousness of certain offences and, indeed, taking into account the perspective of victims of crime.For these reasons, I regret I cannot agree to amendments Nos. 1 to 8. However, as noted by Senator Ruane on Second Stage, section 29 of the Judicial Council Act 2019 provides that the Minister shall commence a review of minimum sentences not later than two years after the commencement of the section. The section was legally commenced with effect from 16 December 2019 and, therefore, the review must be completed and a report must be provided to the Oireachtas within 12 months. I can confirm to the House that the plans are now in place for the legislative requirements to be met in full. In short, this review of all minimum sentences will start in the next couple of weeks and will, in accordance with legislation, be completed within a 12-month period.