Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 24 February 2026
769. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether he has engaged at policy level with the Courts Service regarding the standardisation of offence classification and structured reporting of prosecutions and convictions for the purpose of criminal justice policy evaluation; and whether legislative amendment to the Courts Service Act 1998 is under consideration in this regard [14601/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra770. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether the adequacy of data capture, offence classification, and structured reporting across the criminal justice system has been assessed within his Department; and if so, to outline any reform measures under consideration [14602/26]
Amharc ar fhreagra771. Deputy Ken O'Flynn asked the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration whether he considers the current absence of centrally reportable conviction and sentencing data for offences under the Civil Liability and Courts Act 2004 compatible with evidence-based criminal justice policy development; and whether legislative or administrative reform is under consideration in this regard [14604/26]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 769, 770 and 771 together.
My Department has been advised by the Courts Service that, in the District Court, there is a shared and agreed set of offence codes in use between An Garda Síochána and the Courts Service. This common coding framework supports consistency in case classification, improves data quality and streamlines reporting across organisations.
In the Circuit Court, offence codes are not currently used for a number of reasons. These include reliance on legacy systems and the fact that the principal prosecutor in the Circuit Court is the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) who do not operate using the same offence code framework. As such, offence coding has not formed part of the established process to date.
There is an ongoing initiative across the criminal justice system, involving all relevant agencies, to progress a more consistent, sector-wide approach to offence coding. The shared objective is for all relevant agencies to adopt and use common offence codes. Achieving this requires coordinated system and process changes across multiple bodies, and will therefore be delivered on a phased basis.
In parallel, the Courts Service is progressing a ten-year modernisation programme, including the phased implementation of a new Unified Case Management System (UCMS). The UCMS enhances the quality, structure and consistency of data recorded in relation to court activity. It has already been deployed in the High Court, Supreme Court, Court of Appeal and Circuit Family, with further rollouts planned, and is intended to extend to criminal jurisdictions.
This project will provide a strong foundation for improved structured data capture, including offence-related information. As these reforms are implemented, the overall quality, consistency and completeness of offence data will continue to improve, strengthening the evidence base available to inform policy development and operational planning. No requirement for legislative reform to further this work has been identified.
