Mark Wall (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. There are a number of sections which he has outlined in his initial speech which I would like to discuss with him here. A very helpful note was sent out to us by the Library and Research Service, which informed us that this Bill amends a number of Acts to facilitate the following changes. First, it is to allow an increase in the number of ordinary judges in the Court of Appeal by one to 18, which is something I am sure we all welcome, as all Members contributing this evening have. However, I bring to the Minister of State's attention the number of judges we currently have in the Circuit and District Courts. The vast majority of cases in this country are heard at this particular level. I know it is something we have previously debated in this House through the Courts Act 2023 but it is an issue that has been brought home to me in a number of discussions I have had with senior members of An Garda Síochána in recent months. There is an ongoing issue about the number of gardaí who have to attend a court sitting on the day. This obviously removes them from their daily duties but also forces them to remain in court until the case with which they are involved is called. This could mean - I am told - more than ten gardaí waiting on their cases to be called. Due to the workload of these judges at Circuit and District Court level, many of the gardaí may have to come back another day, removing them from further service because their cases were not called. I know this may not be the case around the entire country but in certain parts of the country, including my own county of Kildare, it is the case. I ask the Government to comment on this particular important matter, on the plans it may have to address the issue and the progress it has made through the Courts Act 2023. I know we have all said in the House that we need the gardaí back on the streets but if we do not address the workload of these Circuit and District Court judges, and appoint more of them, then we are just going to see gardaí waiting around outside court houses in certain parts of the State when they could be carrying out other important, and indeed, urgent duties.

As others have, I also welcome the increase in the maximum penalty for conviction for knife crime from five to seven years. As the Minister of State stated himself, this follows the setting up of a forum in 2020 which reported back to the Minister and the Government. I note from a report in The Irish Times in May this year by Conor Lally that the number of knife crime injuries has increased in the State. The article went on to say, as others Members have mentioned here today, that these injuries are still well below the peak total of 269 recorded in 2006 but that the number of knife injury inpatients remained at more than 230 each year until 2011 when they began to fall. However, they started to rise again and there were over 200 last year. The Health Service Executive knife-assault data only captures people treated as inpatients. Less serious knife-attack injuries which would not require the victim being admitted to hospital as an inpatient are not captured in the data. The data also does not capture cases where the victim dies from their injuries. A total of 2,146 knives were taken from people by gardaí last year. This was up by some 90% on the 2016 figure but slightly below the 2,260 seized in 2020. The Garda sources pointed out that the increase in knife seizures does not necessarily reflect rises in the number of people carrying knives.One of the gardaí who spoke to The Irish Timesstated:

And with the economy generally going well, you’ve people back out in full socialising mode. And with drink and drugs involved in that, stabbings are the typical crime that will increase.

How worrying is a comment like that from a serving garda and how timely is it that we are discussing changing the law on this type of crime? We need a strong message to go out from this and all subsequent conversations on the Bill that knife crime will not be tolerated and there will be further detections and convictions. It is worrying for a parent when his or her child heads out to socialise, but even more worrying when a serving garda says that, with drink and drugs involved, stabbings are the typical crime that will increase. As I have stated in previous justice debates, the Government must continue to fund youth diversion and alternative projects throughout the State. The Minister of State has a particular interest in these. He recently visited some such projects in County Kildare. We must tackle this crime head-on and remove the perceived need to carry a knife by anyone out socialising. We must send out the message that such a need is wrong and could lead the carrier to getting a longer penalty should he or she use that knife and be convicted.

Not for the first time in the House, I will raise the issue of the recruitment and retention crisis in our Defence Forces. I have continuously called on the Government to address this before it is too late. The Bill increases the retirement age for uniformed public servants, including members of An Garda Síochána, prison officers and members of the Defence Forces, from 60 to 62. The Cabinet approved this change in March. There is no doubt that this will be welcomed by some serving members and will allow them to continue serving in their chosen careers. However, I recently attended a briefing in Buswell’s Hotel across the road that was held by representative bodies of uniformed public servants. They raised serious concerns about this increase. Two other Senators who have contributed to the debate also raised concerns. It is not good enough to say that members can work longer or retire and work in the private sector. For some, those are not options. It is a problem for those who joined the Defence Forces on post-2013 contracts. As the Minister of State will be aware, there is no supplementary pension for those who retire before the State pension age of 66 and, as such, there is no incentive for them to continue working until 62, as they will have to wait until they reach 66 to draw down the State pension. Like other Senators, I urge the Minister of State to engage with ICTU and the representative bodies that held the briefing for Oireachtas Members. We want to encourage those serving members with so much expertise to continue in their chosen careers, but without the prospect of a supplementary pension, staying on would not be a worthwhile consideration for many. We cannot lose this expertise. We cannot afford to lose any members from our uniformed service. I urge the Government and the Minister of State to engage with the bodies and examine this important issue urgently. If we can retain these experienced public servants through engagement and proper remuneration, there will be support for that across the political establishment.

I am aware of other sections of the Bill and I look forward to discussing them as we work through the various Stages and engage with the Minister of State.