A Bill allowing prisoners convicted in Ireland to serve their sentences in their home countries after fleeing the State was introduced in the Dáil yesterday.
The Minister of State for Agriculture, Mr John Browne, said the Bill gave effect to provisions to a protocol to a Council of Europe convention. "Enactment of this Bill will enable Ireland to ratify the additional protocol and to operate the relevant Schengen provisions," he added.
The Bill, he said, would apply in two categories of cases.
Firstly, in the case of a person sentenced by an Irish court who fled the State to his or her state of nationality without either commencing or completing the sentence. In that case, the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform could request the authorities in the other state to enforce the Irish sentence.
Secondly, a sentencing state could make a similar request to the Republic in the case of Irish nationals who had fled back to the State prior to the commencement or completion of a sentence.
Under the Bill, Mr Browne said, a request from the sentencing state must receive the consent of the Minister before an application could be made to the High Court for a warrant for the person's arrest. The Minister had to be satisfied as to certain matters before an application was made to the High Court.
Mr Browne said the Bill ensured that there was an effective alternative to extradition.
