02-06-2025
New Government plan will increase meetings between criminals and their victims
THE GOVERNMENT WANTS to massively increase the number of meetings between criminals and the victims of their crimes in a bid to repair the harm caused by offenders.
Fewer than
1% of court cases in 2019
were referred to
restorative justice
programmes, where offenders and victims meet face-to-face alongside trained professionals.
The meetings typically let the victim talk about the impact the crime had on them and get answers to questions they may have.
New targets have now been set out by the Probation Service seeking to increase the number of cases referred by the courts by 10% every year for three years, in the hope that restorative justice can be woven into the justice system.
Welcoming the new targets, assistant professor in criminology at Maynooth University Dr Ian Marder said investment must be increased in order to make the service available to all who might benefit.
'These targets are achievable, but we're starting from a very low baseline,' Marder said.
Pointing to
his own research
, Marder said the state is 'barely scratching the surface of the potential of restorative justice'. He said fewer than 400 cases were referred to the programmes in 2023, despite over 320,000 cases going through the courts.
Based on those figures, as data from 2024 has yet to be published, the Probation Service could see just under 1,500 cases referred to them for restorative justice programmes between 2025 and 2027.
The Programme for Government includes a commitment to continuing the rollout of the restorative justice programme in communities nationwide, Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan
recently told the Dáil
.
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He cited an additional €4m in funding allocated to the Probation Service in Budget 2025 which, among other things, will support services such as restorative justice.
Marder told
The Journal
: 'It is really important to increase referrals to restorative justice because most people affected by crime are still not being offered the chance to participate, even where services exist.'
Sinn Féin's TD Matt Carthy told
The Journal
: 'In the broadest terms, I welcome the publication of the action plan and that it's seen that the Probation Service is taking seriously its commitments to restorative justice.'
The party's justice spokesperson said he hopes the 10% increase is 'not seen as the upper limit' to what can be achieved by the Probation Service in the plan.
Carthy added that the government should continue to provide additional funding to the service but stressed that it should be underpinned by increased investments for community-based organisation facilitating the practice.
The two-year action plan seeks to increase interventions by 10% and start an upskilling and training drive. Potentially suitable cases are referred to the Probation Service's Restorative Justice and Victim Services Unit, probation officers and independent third parties.
Many victims or people impacted by crime are often unaware that restorative justice programmes are available to them through the courts service. Referrals must be made by judges or gardaí.
There are no immediate plans to recruit additional staff in the sector, with the action plan confident that capacity can withstand potential increases in referrals if partnered with sufficient training.
Marder said some organisations have recruited one or two members of additional staff following
a funding injection last year
. He suggested that any additional funding in the action plan may seek to expand services into different counties.
'Again, the problem is that the starting point is very low,' he said. 'So we need to see the investment increase by many multiples before restorative justice will be accessible by everyone who might benefit.'
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