Minister McEntee publishes Courts, Civil Law, Criminal Law and Supperannuation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill 2024

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has received Government approval to publish a wide-ranging Miscellaneous Provisions Bill, which she intends to enact by the Summer recess.

The Bill will provide for an increase in the mandatory retirement age for uniformed public servants, including members of An Garda Síochána, Prison Officers and the Defence Forces, from 60 to 62 years of age.

Minister McEntee said:

“I am pleased to have secured Government approval to legislate for an increase in the mandatory retirement age for uniformed public servants, including members of An Garda Síochána and the Irish Prison Service. This decision reflects the reality that people are living longer, and many want to continue working in their chosen career for longer.”

The Bill also will increase the maximum fines payable by airline and ferry companies where they allow someone to board a vehicle coming into the State without proper documentation.

Minister McEntee said:

“We will increase the fines payable by carriers if they do not comply with their obligations to ensure that passengers present proper documentation when embarking on a journey. My Department are working closely with carriers to support them in these obligations, including through the provision of training. These measures are important parts of the work to deter irregular migration and maintain the integrity of our immigration system. In addition to this, GNIB and the Border Management Unit have carried out 3040 doorstep operations at Dublin Airport to date this year, resulting in a number of detections and prosecutions for immigration offences.”

The Bill will also increase the maximum penalties upon conviction on indictment for the following four knife-related offences;

• Possession in a public place of an article intended to cause injury to, incapacitate or intimidate a person

• Trespass with a knife, weapon of offence or other article which has a blade or sharp point

• Production of an article capable of inflicting serious injury

• Manufacture, sale, hire etc of offensive weapons (of such description as may be specified by Ministerial order)

Minister McEntee continued;

“We are increasing knife crime sentences to reflect the seriousness of the crime, one of a number of sentencing increases I have introduced. I have doubled the maximum sentence for assault causing harm, increased the maximum sentence for conspiracy to murder to life, and increase the maximum sentence for assaulting a peace officer.”

Minister of State James Browne said;

“I tasked a subgroup of the Anti-Social Behaviour Forum with considering possible responses to knife possession and knife crime and one of the recommendations arising from that was an increase in maximum sentences for possession, production, manufacture and sale of or trespass with a knife or weapon and I am pleased that we have secured Government approval for those proposals which represent a proportionate rebalancing and strengthening of the penalties. Producing or using a knife to intimidate or assault somebody is a serious crime that can have lasting physical and psychological effects and I welcome the future availability of a broader range of sentencing options for the judiciary when considering these offences.”

The Bill also includes a number of amendments to the Judicial Council Act 2019 to provide for changes to the personal injuries guidelines to address issues identified by the Supreme Court in the recent Delaney case.

ENDS

Notes to editors

Provisions of the Bill:

Part 1- Short Title and Commencement:

This Part includes standard provisions of the Bill.

Part 2 - Courts:

Part 2 will provide for an increase in the maximum number of judges in the Court of Appeal by one to allow for the establishment of a Tribunal of Inquiry for the Defence Forces.

Part 3: Amendments to the Immigration Act 2003

This Part will amend the Immigration Act 2003 to increase Carrier Liability Fines by providing for a Class A fine to be imposed on carriers who commit an offence under the terms of the Act. This provides for a maximum fine of €5,000.

Part 4 – Judicial Council Act 2019

Part 4 will make a number of amendments to the Judicial Council Act 2019:

1. The Supreme Court judgment in Delaney [2024] IESC 10 has implications for the personal injuries guidelines established in accordance with the Judicial Council Act 2019. This Part of the Bill will provide that personal injuries guidelines in force immediately before the coming into operation of this Bill shall, notwithstanding the provisions of the Act, continue in force without amendment until amendments to the guidelines are adopted under the revised procedures specified in the Bill.

2. To provide that any new version of the personal injuries guidelines adopted by the Judicial Council will be approved by resolution by each House of the Oireachtas, thereby addressing further issues raised in Delaney [2024] IESC 10;

Part 5: Criminal Law

Part 5 will amend the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act 1990 to increase the maximum penalties upon conviction on indictment for the following four knife-related offences:

These changes were recommended by the multi-stakeholder knife-crime offences subgroup of the Anti-Social Behaviour Forum, which was established by Ministers McEntee and Browne in response to increased concern regarding the possession of knives for criminal purposes and whose membership comprised representatives of the justice and community sectors.

Part 6 – Miscellaneous Amendments

There are two amendments in this section:

• The first provides for amendment of section 23(5) of the European Arrest Warrant Act 2003, as substituted by section 16(a) of the European Arrest Warrant (Amendment) Act 2024 to correct a typographical error identified within the substituted text of section 23(5).

• The second provides for amendment of section 38(1)(h) of the Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Custodial Sentences) Act 2023 to correct two typographical errors identified within the text of that section.

Part 7 – Superannuation

Part 7 will facilitate an increase in the mandatory retirement age for uniformed public servants from 60 to 62 years, within the context of the Department of Public Expenditure, NDP Delivery and Reform’s fast accrual pensions policy