Ivana Bacik (Independent)
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I welcome the Minister to the House. I support my colleague, Senator Mulcahy, in his request. I was part of the justice committee he mentioned, and I was present when he made his powerful contribution. I am very glad to hear, as I know he is, about the good news on the Istanbul Convention, which is a serious issue for non-governmental organisations and so on. Everyone will be very glad to hear that.

The issue I raise is when the problem for people with criminal records will be addressed. This relates to the issue of spent convictions which, as the Minister is aware, is a black spot in terms of the Irish criminal justice system in that we are now the only country in the European Union, and one of very few in the Council of Europe area, which does not have legislation generally allowing for convictions to be considered spent following a set rehabilitative period, other than the small number of convictions covered by the Children Act 2001.

The Seanad passed the Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill in 2012 but the legislation is stalled in the Dáil. I understand it has not yet passed beyond Committee Stage.

Paddy Burke (Fine Gael)
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It is ordered for Report Stage.

Ivana Bacik (Independent)
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Report Stage is ordered but it has not commenced Report Stage.

I have been approached by quite a number of individuals, as I know have other colleagues, in particular my colleague, Senator John Kelly, who are very much disadvantaged by the failure to enact legislation on this because as we know, having a criminal record can present obstacles to employment, education or training, insurance, volunteering and travel abroad.

The Irish Penal Reform Trust, IPRT, has worked for a long time for a scheme such as this one and welcomed the Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill. I am grateful to the IPRT for arranging with me a seminar on the issue of spent convictions on 4 February. Quite a number of colleagues from the Dáil and the Seanad attended that seminar because there is a great deal of concern about this issue.

Many of us are being approached by people who are very much affected by it. We heard eloquent and powerful testimony from a director of Unlock, the national association of reform defenders in Britain, and from Irish individuals including Deirdre Malone, the executive director of the Irish Penal Reform Trust, who spoke about the effect the absence of any such framework for spent convictions has had.

We heard in particular that once the Bill is recommenced, and I hope that will happen very soon, there are two areas we might want to examine again, particularly in light of recent British changes. The United Kingdom recently raised the upper limit for a sentence that can be considered spent to up to 48 months, or four years.That is quite a significant change compared to the 12 months' maximum sentence that is provided for in the Bill at present. We might want to look at that period to see if we could increase that also.

The other point that was made forcefully to us was that at present the Bill would only allow for convictions to be spent where there are two or less convictions. From my background in criminal justice practice, I would be aware that in their early or late teens, many might have picked up three or four public order convictions or minor convictions arising out of one incident but, because there are three or four of those minor convictions, they can never be considered spent under the Bill. Can that be reviewed when the Bill moves to Report Stage?

The most pressing issue is a timeframe in which we can reassure those involved that they are likely to see their convictions considered spent. One young man, who approached me recently, had been offered a job and, because of a minor conviction that he had picked up in his late teens, he is fearful that he will not be able to take up the job. There are many others in Ireland who are facing similar disadvantages in employment, in travelling abroad, etc., and this legislation is a lifeline for them.

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Bacik for raising this issue and giving me an opportunity to update the House on the situation in relation to it.

The Criminal Justice (Spent Convictions) Bill 2012 has passed Committee Stage in the Dáil, having passed all Stages in the Seanad. However, before the Bill could be taken at Report Stage, a 2013 UK Court of Appeal judgment necessitated a review of the disclosure provisions in both the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012 and the spent convictions Bill. That Court of Appeal case, known as the case of R (on the application of T) v. Chief Constable of Greater Manchester, found that the indiscriminate disclosure of all old, minor criminal records is incompatible with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Pending the amendment of both the spent convictions Bill, and the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012, an administrative filter for Garda vetting disclosures has now been introduced. This provides that certain minor offences that are over seven years old are no longer disclosed. I should, therefore, state that we now have procedures in place that are more generous provisions than those currently contained in the spent convictions Bill. This is because the number of motoring offences or public order offences which are not disclosed is not restricted to the two offences currently envisaged in the spent convictions Bill. In accordance with the provisions of this filter, over 80% of District Court convictions now become spent after seven years and are no longer being disclosed in Garda vetting disclosures.

This filter now provides the basis for amending the spent convictions Bill, with a few alterations. I am mindful that a Circuit Court conviction which results in a penalty of 12 months' imprisonment could become spent under the current provisions of the Bill. I intend to retain a provision in the Bill which will allow one such Circuit Court conviction to become spent after seven years.

The UK case and a related report, known as the Mason report, have recommended that any regime of non-disclosure must be proportionate and "should be both simple and understandable to individuals who are users and/or customers of the disclosure service." I fully agree with that recommendation. However, the spent convictions Bill currently has 24 different categories of offences with 24 different relevant periods after which that category of conviction is spent. This is an unnecessarily complex and confusing aspect of the Bill. Accordingly, I intend to amend the Bill to mirror the simpler provisions already contained in the administrative filter. I intend to have a common standard for minor convictions becoming spent after seven years. This will provide a clear, easy to understand procedure.

I assure Senator Bacik that the amendments are being finalised and I intend to bring the amendments to the Bill before the Oireachtas as soon as possible, and certainly to have the Bill will be enacted before the summer. The Office of the Parliamentary Counsel, OPC, is currently finalising work on those amendments.

I should state however, that the spent convictions Bill does riot apply to visa applications or job applications in any other state, as we simply cannot legislate in this State for such matters.

Ivana Bacik (Independent)
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I am grateful to the Minister for her comprehensive response.

I was aware of the T case. Indeed, at the seminar with the Irish Penal Reform Trust, we discussed the case and its implications and we were conscious that the legislation would need to be reviewed in the context of that judgment. All of us would appreciate that. It was merely the length of time it had taken.

I am grateful to the Minister for setting out the development of the administrative filter. I am grateful also to her for clarifying that a more simplified process will be put in place because that was one of the criticisms of the Irish Penal Reform Trust, that the proposed metrics in the current version of the Bill in Schedule 2 is particularly complex and a simplified version would assist in legal certainty.I am also glad to hear that the two-offences restriction will be lifted, at least in some cases, thereby enabling people to have their convictions considered spent, even when there are more than two.

I am grateful to the Minister for that clarification. I look forward to the Bill coming back to the Seanad in order that we can approve the amendments that went through the Dáil before the summer.

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I realise the importance of this legislation and its implications for individuals. As the Senator said, offences which often may have been committed much earlier in a person's life become an impediment to taking up a job. I realise the urgency of this legislation and I will be introducing those amendments as soon as they are finalised. I intend to have the Bill enacted before the summer.