Laws saving children from crime ‘to be ready in 2022’
LAWS surrounding coercion and grooming children into a life of criminality should be enacted next year, the Minister for Justice has said.
Speaking yesterday, Justice Minister Helen McEntee said that they introduced the heads of that Bill earlier on this year and that her department is currently developing the general scheme of it.
She said: ‘This will look at ensuring it’s not just the crime itself; that the criminal gangs, or perhaps the adult, where they have coerced young children into committing those crimes, that they’re not criminalised for the act itself. The act of coercing or grooming the child is included as a second offence and has a penalty of potentially up to five years.
‘It will most likely be enacted next year. We have to bring the general scheme before Government
and that won’t happen until the second quarter of this year.
‘It will then, obviously, have to go through preliminary scrutiny within the Justice Committee. But I do anticipate that that will be enacted by next year.’
Ms McEntee added that ‘the strategy also incorporates a focus on serious offending patterns’. She explained: ‘This includes further development of the successful Bail Supervision Scheme and the Greentown programme aimed at children and young people who are subject to coercive control by criminal groups.’
Minister McEntee was speaking as it was announced that Garda Youth Diversion Projects are to be expanded into every county across Ireland as part of the Government’s new strategy aimed at steering vulnerable children and young adults away from crime.
Minister of State with responsibility for Law Reform James
Browne said there should be a ‘no wrong door’ policy when young people are in difficulty.
He added: ‘If a family or a young person engages any service, there should also be accessible pathways to other services and supports that they might need. And, ideally, we should be engaging young people at risk before they enter the justice system.’
The junior minister launched the strategy alongside the Justice Minister yesterday.
It is designed to enhance engagement with children and young people who are most at risk of involvement in criminal activity, by strengthening the services available through the existing network of 105 Garda Youth Diversion Projects across the State.
As some areas do not currently have a GYDP service, the strategy proposes to achieve full national coverage within two years, principally by extending the operating area of existing projects, but a small number of new projects will also be required.
Under the strategy, services will be enhanced to provide early intervention and engagement with more challenging young people whose needs may be too complex for the existing GYDP services. It also aims to work with schools to support retention of young people with challenging behaviour in the education system.
Mr Browne said the youth justice system generally interacts with 12- to 17-year-olds, and that Garda experience shows a significant number of young people who commit a crime will ‘grow out’ of offending behaviour.
‘Will grow out of offending’