Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 12 May 2026
795. Deputy Malcolm Byrne asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration further to Parliamentary Question No. 427 of 27 November 2026, to provide an update on the use of restorative justice in the Irish legal system, including data for 2025. [34273/26]
View answerI am committed to progressing and implementing policies aimed at increasing the use of effective community sanctions that reduce offending, divert people away from criminal behaviour, and support sustainable rehabilitation. Restorative justice is a key component of this work, and evidence shows that this practice can support victims to recover from the impact of a crime, as well as serving to reduce re-offending.
In April 2025, I approved the publication of the Probation Service’s Action Plan - "Restoring Relationships: Repairing Harm and Empowering Voices through Restorative Justice" which runs from 2025 to 2027. This plan is designed to promote awareness and support increased use of restorative justice across the system. The plan also commits the Probation Service to driving the integration of restorative justice into all its services, while also expanding it nationally.
I was pleased to secure, in Budget 2026, a very substantial 13% increase in funding for the Probation Service, which includes funds to increase the use of supervised community sanctions in the criminal courts, as well as the development and expansion of several schemes, including restorative justice services.
The Probation Service provides restorative justice nationally, and also through a number of Community Based Organisations (CBOs), which provide dedicated restorative justice programmes across 24 counties. The Probation Service also funds other CBOs which use restorative practice in their work with clients, to promote respectful relationships, and acknowledge and address the harm caused by their offending. The Service, through its national Restorative Justice and Victim Services Unit, also supports the integration of Restorative Justice models into practice across the country. This includes victim empathy programmes, family restorative conferences, reparation projects, and victim-offender dialogues.
I’m advised that the Service has recently concluded a call for Expressions of Interest (EOI) from CBOs which are interested and capable of employing dedicated Restorative Justice project workers to deliver restorative justice services in Donegal, Sligo, Louth, Cavan and Monaghan. The Service will also be conducting EOI competitions in 2026 to further expand its services including in South Tipperary.
I’m advised that the Probation Service recently ran a call for Expressions of Interest (EOI) from CBOs that are interested and capable of employing a dedicated Restorative Justice project worker to deliver restorative justice services in Waterford. When the EOI process is concluded and the service is in place, this will bring to 25 the number of counties in which the Probation Service funded community-based Restorative Justice services are available.
The below table includes the number of people who have engaged in restorative justice over the last five years. The figures for 2025 are not yet available and will be published shortly as part of the Probation Service Annual Report 2025.
|
- |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023* |
2024* |
|
Probation Service (Adult) |
37 |
24 |
36 |
63 |
81 |
72 |
|
Young Person's Probation |
11 |
15 |
5 |
12 |
- |
- |
|
Community Training Centre |
- |
- |
- |
- |
- |
20 |
|
Le Chéile |
31 |
26 |
21 |
12 |
21 |
38 |
|
Cornmarket |
16 |
11 |
19 |
10 |
23 |
32 |
|
Restorative Justice Services |
433 |
177 |
187 |
240 |
245 |
489 |
|
Restorative Justice in the Community |
200 |
87 |
132 |
88 |
77 |
129 |
*To note, probation figures from 2023 and 2024 do not distinguish between adults and juveniles.
