Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality his plans for a specific action plan to address the particular needs of women offenders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [39347/12]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I am advised by the Director General that the recently published the Irish Prison Service 3 year Strategic Plan contains a commitment to develop a number of specific strategies for certain categories of prisoners including women offenders. Work is in progress to develop a strategic action plan targeted at meeting the specific needs of female offenders. The two agencies involved, the Irish Prison Service and the Probation Service, are working together to develop a women centred holistic strategy that seeks to address those factors that lead some women to come in contact with the criminal justice system while also seeking to provide better outcomes for those women whom the courts deem that a custodial sanction is warranted. The strategy aims to ensure a more targeted response which takes into consideration the particular issues that pertain to female offending including: the pathways into crime for women may be different to that for men; the profile of women offenders can be different to male; offenders; the nature and range of offences committed by women can be different to those committed by men; female offending can be multifaceted and complex and factors such as poverty, homelessness, mental and physical health, abuse, domestic violence and substance misuse are often significant causal factors for female offending.

The overall aims of the action plan will be to identify and divert those women at risk of a custodial sentence through greater use of community supports and inter-agency co-operation; improve the outcomes for those women in custody; reduce recidivism; strengthen early intervention measures through adopting a co-ordinated, multi-agency approach; and explore the potential of alternatives to custody. The action plan is expected to be finalised by the end of the year. Finally, in line with the recommendations in the Report of the Thornton Hall Project Review Group, the establishment of a group to carry out an all encompassing strategic review of penal policy has just been announced. That group will look at this issue.