Joe McHugh (Donegal, Fine Gael)
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64. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality if she will provide an update on actions in the Justice Plan 2022 regarding reform of sentencing; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [51642/22]

Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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As the Deputy will be aware, the judiciary, as the third branch of Government, are independent in the matter of sentencing, subject only to the Constitution and the law.

However, it is a matter for the Government and the Oireachtas to propose and enact legislation which sets out the maximum sentence which a court can impose for a particular crime. In a number of cases the Oireachtas has prescribed a presumptive minimum sentence for certain serious offences, however this is currently being reviewed under a requirement contained in the Judicial Council Act.

In imposing a sentence, a court is required to impose a sentence which is proportionate, not only to the crime but also to the offender, based on the facts heard in each individual case.

As provided for in the Judicial Council Act 2019, a new Sentencing Guidelines Committee has been established by the Judicial Council which includes a number of lay members. The Committee is responsible for compiling sentencing guidelines with a view to establishing parameters and norms to help guide a judge while sentencing. The courts are also required to hear from victims in certain cases where they wish to make a victim impact statement.

I believe that our criminal law must ensure that a wider range of appropriate options are available to the judiciary including, where appropriate, custodial sentences that reflect the harm caused by crime to victims and to communities.

That is why I am proposing legislative changes that will increase the maximum sentence permitted for assault causing harm, taking it from 5 to 10 years.

I will also provide for an increase in the sentence for the offence of conspiracy to commit murder of up to life imprisonment.

I am introducing new standalone offences of stalking and non-fatal strangulation so that appropriate sentences can be imposed to reflect the harm caused by such insidious offences.

In the coming weeks, I will also publish new Hate Crime legislation which will introduce new, specific aggravated offences with enhanced penalties for crimes motivated by prejudice against protected characteristics.

In addition, I am examining reforms to the current mandatory life sentence for murder which would allow a judge to specify a minimum number of years, or tariff, to be served for murder. This change would allow the courts to reflect the aggravating factors and gravity of certain cases and give the public more confidence that, in the most heinous murder cases, judges will have the discretion to set a minimum tariff for a life sentence.

The Deputy will however also appreciate that imprisonment is not always the most appropriate punishment for offending behaviour and the Programme for Government set out a coherent approach to enhancing and sustaining a more just and safe society with a specific commitment to review policy options for prison and penal reform, which my Department has been undertaking over the last two years.

The recently published reports of the Penal Policy Working Group and the Task Force on Mental Health and Addiction in the criminal justice system, chaired by former Minister Kathleen Lynch and undertaken jointly by experts in my Department and the Department of Health, both recognise that reducing re-offending requires a system not just focused on punishment but also on rehabilitation and reintegration. This includes ensuring that a range of effective alternatives to short custodial sentences are available as well as providing offenders with the opportunity to examine and address the root causes of their own offending behaviour.