Written answers
Thursday, 14 November 2013
Department of Justice and Equality
Ministerial Appointments
Finian McGrath (Dublin North Central, Independent)
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140. To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality if he will list the persons that he has appointed or reappointed to the Parole Board; if he will provide the criteria to determine who to appoint and reappoint; if the selection process is transparent and accountable; his plans to appoint a person to the board from an organisation representing the victims of crime; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [48713/13]
Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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I can inform the Deputy that I made the following appointments to the Parole Board:
| Year | Appointments |
|---|---|
| July, 2011 | Mr. John Costello, Chairman |
| Mr. Ciarán de Buis | |
| July, 2012 | Mr. Willie Connolly |
| Mr. Eddie Rock | |
| Ms Nora McGarry | |
| Mr. Shane McCarthy (re-appointed) | |
| August, 2012 | Mr. Brian Murphy (ex-officio) |
| Mr. Vivian Geiran (ex-officio) | |
| January, 2013 | Mr. Ray Kavanagh |
| Mr. Mick Duff |
details on membership are set out in the Board's Annual Report which I recently published and is available on my Department's website at www.justice.ie.
I announced my intention in 2011 to enact legislation to place the Parole Board on a statutory footing which I believe will help to strengthen the Board and
improve its functions. Work is under way and progress is being made. Decisions have yet to be finalised on exactly what role a statutory Parole Board
should play, what powers it should have, and how it should fit into the overall criminal justice system. I addressed the inaugural conference of the Parole
Board in that regard on Friday 25 October, 2013. The discussions focussed on several aspects of the parole process, including the role of victims and the
extent to which they should be involved in the process, and experience from other jurisdictions. Those discussions will also help inform this process.
I have also appointed a group to carry out a strategic review of penal policy. This is a wide-ranging and important review with implications for the future
direction and implementation of penal policy in Ireland. I expect the group to report early in the new year. When I have considered their
recommendations, I will bring proposals forward to Government for a statutory Parole Board. As I have said before, in that context I will bear in mind the
Deputy's suggestion on victim representation.
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