Lucinda Creighton (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 584: To ask the Minister for Justice and Law Reform the progress he has made regarding the introduction of standardised evidence-based risk assessments specifically designed for sex offenders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [1242/11]

Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)
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In 2009 I announced a new policy on the management of sex offenders in prison which is aimed at bringing about changes in offenders' lives that reduce risk of re-offending and enhance public protection. Significant progress has been made to date in implementing this policy, with Arbour Hill being designated as the national centre for sex offenders and the introduction of a new suite of programmes for sex offenders called the Building Better Lives (BBL) programme. The new approach allows for interventions to take greater account of individual risk, needs and capacity.

In the circumstances where a convicted sex offender has completed his or her sentence and is released into the community the relevant state agencies manage that person's release, and the level of interventions required, on the basis of the assessed risk to public safety. Best practice indicates that different jurisdictions as well as different agencies within jurisdictions should use the same evidence based sex offender risk assessment instruments so as to support effective communication. Therefore an all island risk assessment tool has been introduced. The combination of RM2000 and SA 2007 is the sex offender risk assessment system currently used by Probation and Police services in Northern Ireland, Scotland and in various parts of England and Wales.

The Risk Matrix 2000 (RM 2000) is a static risk assessment instrument which enables criminal justice agencies working with offenders to estimate the likelihood that an offender will incur a further conviction over long term periods of 5, 10 and 15 years. It distinguishes four levels of risk: low; medium; high and very high. As such it gives a clear indication of the level of intervention the offender will require if under supervision. The Probation Service and An Garda Síochána have undertaken a programme of staff training in this instrument. The Probation Service has trained approximately 120 staff from prison and community based teams to ensure a national capacity to assess all sex offenders under the supervision of the service. This instrument is currently being applied to sex offenders under the supervision of the Probation Service and subject to Garda notification requirements.

SA 2007 is a dynamic sex offender risk assessment instrument. This instrument is responsive to the current risks posed by individual sex offenders. Further, it identifies key risk factors relevant to the particular individual so that risk management strategies can be more individually targeted. It also provides a warning system for imminent relapse. The Probation Service introduced the SA07 through its High Risk Offender Management Team in 2007 and commenced a twelve month SA07 national pilot from 1 May 2010.