Bill will grant judges power to defer detention for young offenders
Unlike adults, children currently cannot be given a suspended sentence because experts believe children think that they are getting off from sanction and will continue their offending.
However, a new provision known as a deferred sentence supervision order will allow a judge, if they deem detention is appropriate, to defer sentencing for up to a year and put the child under the supervision of the Probation Service.
If the child complies with conditions in the order — such as no further offending and be of good behaviour — a judge can discharge the child at sentencing.
However, if the child does not comply, the judge can order detention at the sentencing hearing and, if the child has turned 18, imprisonment.
The Oireachtas justice committee heard of the new provision during a hearing on three bills, including the Children (Amendment) Bill 2024.
Marisa Gomez, of the Department of Justice, told the committee that the consensus among child and legal experts was that a suspended sentence, on its own, is 'not appropriate' for children as it 'does not give them an opportunity to deal with the consequences' of their offending.
She said the child 'takes it that they are getting out of sanction'. She said they see a suspended sentence as a 'free ticket' and will continue their offending behaviour.
Fianna Fáil TD for Dublin Bay North Tom Brabazon said there needed to be real restorative justice in sanctions applied, where they have to meet the people they have caused serious harm to and 'made understand' what they have done.
He said restorative justice should be part of the diversion scheme for juveniles — where children are diverted from the courts — and in the sanctions imposed on children by courts.
'Plagued' by criminality
He said he knows of cases where ordinary people are 'plagued' by children engaged in criminality and their lives made an 'utter misery'.
A second draft bill, the General Scheme of the Criminal Justice (Violation of EU Restrictive Measures) Bill 2025, relates to Irish implementation of an EU directive on offences relating to sanctions.
The most prominent ones are linked to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The sanctions include asset freezes, travel bans, as well as import/export restrictions, and the provision of financial and other services to sanctioned people or entities.
Both the committee chair, Sinn Féin TD Matt Carthy, and independent senator Lynn Ruane said the bill was supposed to bring consistency in how EU member states treated breaches of sanctions, but was not consistent in the countries targeted — with Israel not on it.
'The concept and principle of restrictive measures is not applied consistently,' Mr Carty said, adding that the EU were currently failing to agree on sanctions on Israel.
Brendan Bruen, of the Department of Justice, said the bill only deals with sanctions where they are already agreed by the EU.
An address on the General Scheme of the National Cyber Security Bill, published last August, provided an overview of the provisions and the EU cybersecurity directive NIS2.
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Irish Examiner
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4 hours ago
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Letters to the Editor, July 26th: On a national day of protest, GAA referees, and pearl clutchers
Sir, – I wish to personally support the call for a national day of protest (Letters, July 24th) over the humanitarian catastrophe which has unfolded in Gaza. The vast majority of Irish people are totally frustrated and appalled that; despite the courageous stance taken by the Irish Government, the situation for the starving and subjugated civilian population is getting worse by the day. A man-made famine is now a reality on top of the mass killing of civilians in the prosecution of this disproportionate war by Israel. Some march and write letters to express our frustration. Many others do not, for fear of being falsely labelled anti-Semitic or supportive of Hamas. READ MORE A national day of protest, at a time designated by the Government, which was purely a condemnation of the atrocities in Gaza and for aid to be allowed in, would allow us, in all of our diversity as citizens to vent our anger and express national solidarity with the people of Gaza. 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If they witness what is happening surely they will act? – Yours, etc, (in fading hope), ALICE O'DONNELL, Delgany, Co Wicklow. Sir, – John O'Neill (Letters, July 24th) rightly points out the error in conflating Jewish identity with the actions of the Israeli state. I offer the following comparison: In 2022 almost 74 per cent of the Israeli population identified as Jewish. In Portugal, the 2021 census identified 80 per cent of the population as Catholic. If the government of Portugal embarked on some terrible military action against a part of Spain which action was condemned worldwide, would any sane, rational person say that any criticism of the Portuguese government was anti-Catholic? I think not. – Yours, etc, GERARD CLARKE, Dundrum Dublin Sir, – If you didn't see the interview on RTÉ Prime Time with Bob Geldof on Thursday regarding Gaza, you should find it on the RTÉ player. He spoke the truth, clearly and honestly, a man who has a track record in recognising human suffering. I emailed Prime Time after the programme. Ireland and Israel are both members of the European Broadcasting Union. Could RTÉ Prime Time please share the interview with Bob Geldof with all the members of the union? It might help. – Yours, etc, PAUL MULLIGAN, Vergemount Park, Dublin 6. Sir, – Bob Geldof made a passionate plea to stop Israel's massacre of Palestinians in Gaza and the state-sponsored terrorism in the West Bank (RTE 1, Prime Time, July 24th). Bob's humanitarian track record through many decades, which commands respect internationally, together with his communication skills, position him to be an outstanding president of Ireland. – Yours, etc, TOM CARROLL, Ennis Road, Limerick. Don't forget about Sudan Sir, – Dominic Crowley, the CEO of Concern, welcomes the UN secretary general's focus on Gaza ('What did we do to stop this?', Irish Times Letters, July 25th). However, bad as the situation in Gaza is, it is dwarfed by the suffering in the ongoing Sudanese war that broke out in 2023. According to the European Commission some 25 million Sudanese are affected by food shortages with some four million children suffering from acute hunger. Famine has now been confirmed in 10 areas. The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) estimates that 6.7 million women and girls in Sudan are facing alarming levels of sexual violence. UN health chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has complained that there is less global interest in the conflict in Sudan compared to crises elsewhere in the world. Why are some wars deemed more worthy of our attention than others? – Yours, etc, KARL MARTIN, Bayside, Dublin 13. Bad language Sir, – With reference to Brianna Parkins' article ' People who get up early in the morning for no reason are a menace to society ,' (July 19th), I consider it not so much about vulgarity, but rather normal conversational Jackeen English, spoken by the ordinary denizens of Ireland's capital city. Somehow, 'Upon reflection the exertion proved to be unwarranted,' does not seem quite up to par with 'But I shouldn't have bothered my hole'. – Yours, etc, SEÁN O'BRIEN, Donaghmede, Dublin. Sir, – I usually enjoy Brianna Parkins's articles in Saturday's Magazine but the coarse language used on Saturday July 19th shocked, nay disappointed, me. – Yours, etc, PAT DALY, Kilkenny. Criticism of MetroLink Sir, – A lot of the criticism of the MetroLink project are well founded. That said, there has been very little discussion of problems arising from the practicalities of the whole thing. If, as proposed, the line starts and finishes in Swords the first thing this will do is displace current users of public transport commuting from Swords to the city centre from the bus network to the rail network as happened when Luas was introduced. One can only imagine the scenes at the Dublin Airport stop when a full train arrives from Swords during peak hours and airport passengers attempt to board with accompanying luggage. The same would happen with trains to the airport in the evenings with disgruntled passengers unable to board at stops other than the terminus. This whole thing needs to be reconsidered. – Yours, et, BRENDAN McMAHON, Naaas, Co Kildare. Light rail for Galway Sir, – Anthony Moran (Letters, July 24th) calls light rail in Galway a 'deluded fantasy,' but facts suggest otherwise. The 2024 Gluas feasibility study identified a viable east-west corridor with demand already exceeding 60 per cent of the passenger volumes seen on the initial Luas Red Line. Construction timelines for light rail in cities of similar size – such as Bergen, Norway (population: 280,000) – have been achieved within four years with minimal disruption. Far from being a 'fantasy,' light rail represents a practical, scalable solution to Galway's worsening congestion and climate obligations. Dismissing it out of hand serves no one – least of all the people of Galway. – Yours, etc. RICHARD LOGUE, Moville, Co Donegal. Bye, bye, summer? Sir, – When summer comes can autumn be far behind? The leaves on one of the trees in the green area opposite my house are beginning to turn. – Yours, etc, JANE MEREDITH, Dublin 18. Blair apology to Guildford Four Sir, – I refer to the article ' Tony Blair's letter saying sorry to Guildford Four was not intended as an apology ' (July 22nd). The article ignores the letter of public apology made by Mr Blair to myself and the other members of The Guildford Four as well as the Maguire Seven on February 9th, 2005. This letter stated that: 'There was a miscarriage of justice in the case of Gerard Conlon and all of the Guildford Four…' The then prime minister goes on to acknowledge 'the trauma that the conviction caused the Conlon and Maguire families and the stigma which wrongly attaches to them to this day' and unreservedly apologises when he says 'I am very sorry that they were subject to such an ordeal and injustice. That is why I'm making this apology: they deserve to be publicly and completely exonerated.' While it came 16 years after our release, Mr Blair's apology meant a great deal to me and my family and many others. I hope this is what will be remembered and not some internal correspondence which suggests a government nervous about making such a public apology. – Yours ,etc. PADDY ARMSTRONG, (Guildford Four) Clontarf, Dublin 3. Women's GAA and referees Sir, – Having watched many of the games in the women's championship this year it's impossible not to pull your hair out at the constant referees' decisions on what is a foul. If a player breathes on an opposition player the referee blows the whistle. While we all acknowledge the contribution referees make to our Gaelic games it seems they are instructed not to allow any tackling at all in the women's game. If the same was applied to the men's game, the games would be a farce. I watched the women's semi-finals and it was infuriating to see the constant stoppages for what were perceived to be fouls. I hope the final between Meath and Dublin will not be marred by these constant stoppages for innocuous 'fouls'; where even the advantage rule is not applied. It's ruining the women's game and you can see the frustration among the players. It's a great competition. Let's not ruin it by making it a non-contact sport altogether. – Yours, etc, KEVIN BYRNE, Bantry, West Cork. Sir, – Apropos Frank McNally's catechism of GAA clichés (An Irishman's Diary, July 24th), I propose the following addition: How do commentators and analysts react when the referee doesn't see or ignores a number of fouls? The ref is having a good game, he's letting it flow. –Yours , etc, JOHN SHORTEN, Balbriggan, Co Dublin. Sir, – Frank McNally has found every GAA commentator's script. Who was a pundit in a past life? Either way, everyone should take notes. – Yours, etc, JAMES CLEAR, Dún Laoghaire Co Dublin. Winding down the clock Sir, – It is interesting that when TV stations broadcast matches like the All-Ireland football final live the match clock counts up showing the amount of time that has passed. Surely the clock should count down, showing the time remaining as this is what really matters? – Yours, etc, PAT KENNEDY, Navan, Co Meath. The housing crisis Sir, – The article by John McManus (' We need to face reality that housing cannot be solved, ' July 23rd) sets out the issue central to the so-called housing crisis faced by the Government. The population of this country is racing ahead of any possibility of either the private or public sectors building enough units to house all over the coming decade. He goes on to suggest that official estimates of the population are 'wildly underestimated' at 5.45 million in 2023. With the brokers Davy expecting the population to hit some 5.9 million by 2030, the task of meeting the demand for accommodation ( estimated by Davy at 120,000 units per annum) is entirely beyond us. It's time the Government came clean with the reality of the challenge being faced and accepted that housing production cannot keep pace with population growth. The only alternative is to control migration, thus cooling the housing market. In that regard it may well be that the Trump tariffs will actually do us a favour through us being forced to press the pause button on foreign direct investment (FDI) and the obsession with jobs growth. – Yours, etc, MICHAEL GILMARTIN, Blackrock, Co Dublin. Pearl clutchers Sir, – To say, as Stephen Wall does (Letters, July 24th), that the new 22-storey College Square tower on Tara Street has a 'catastrophic impact on the historic urban landscape' seems pearl-clutching in the extreme. The tower is more of a harbinger of a future Dublin when its current detractors (and supporters) will have left the stage. The edifice is tall, imposing, majestic even. Please can we have more of this type of thing? – Yours, etc, BRIAN AHERN, Clonsilla, Dublin.
