A TD who said she and others were “targeted by the media” for pointing to issues around migrant crime, says that as Gardaí are reported to be “in favour” of recording ethnicity of suspects in criminal cases, the Government has “no excuse” not to move on the issue “without delay”.
Offaly Independent Carol Nolan made her remarks today as it was reported that “Gardaí could soon record the ethnicity of suspects and those convicted of serious crimes such as sexual assault, under new plans being prepared by the Government”.
An Garda Síochána told Extra.ie today that it is ‘in favour’ of recording the ethnicity of sex offenders – which could mean that a call from the Women’s Coalition on Immigration, which was supported by TDs at a press event last month, where a call was made “on the government to release crime statistics disaggregated on ethnicity and country of origin” so that policy could be grounded in “fact not fantasy”, is acted on.
Following a widespread consultation with stakeholders in data, civil liberties, and criminal justice, it was decided that PPS numbers should be used for this purpose. To get a PPS number, you must note both your nationality and, if you were born abroad, your country of birth, Extra.ie reported.
The justice spokesman said: ‘Using the PPSN would enable the Central Statistics Office, to gather anonymised, disaggregated information on those interacting with the justice system. This would provide an invaluable source of data for research-informed policy decisions, including the production of anonymised statistics on special characteristics, including, for example ethnicity.’
He added: ‘Data can assist in identifying emerging trends and patterns that the criminal justice sector may need to respond to. Sharing a common identification number across the criminal justice sector would facilitate the accurate exchange of information, which could further enhance its ability to identify these emerging trends and patterns.’
A recent event calling for the aggregation of crime data according to ethnicity and nationality heard Deputy Nolan say that she believed she had been vindicated for her public statements on the issue of non-national crime, particularly in relation to women and girls.
“My concern is that while we have had successive governments making limited efforts to tackle sexual violence, they have at the same time effectively turned a blind eye to a major contributing factor to violence against women and girls; namely the presence here of non-national men who appear to view sexual violence or aggression as a right,” she said last month.
Deputy Nolan said today that she and others, including Deputy Ken O’Flynn, “were attacked and targeted by the media for asking for basic data to be aggregated and published, yet now we see reports that An Garda Síochana favour recording ethnicity in relation to suspects in criminal cases. The real question is why anyone would oppose such a basic requirement, especially as it concerns public safety. Why delay this at all?”
“The government has no excuse not to move on this serious issue without delay,” she said. “The Irish people are entitled to this data, and to an examination of migrant crime, especially given the evidence from, and experience of, other countries.”
Barrister Laoise de Brún of the Women’s Coalition on Immigration hit out at an Irish Times description of the event as making claims without evidence, saying immigration “like trans” had become “a sacred pillar of the new left”.
“We observe how the media behaves the same way with regard to each of these issues. We are alive to, and well versed in, the use of an ad hominem response because we dare challenge the narrative. We know we represent the majority and will continue the work.”
She said that a thematic report previously produced by the group showed an overrepresentation of non-national men in sexual offending crimes across six EU countries.
Also responding to the Irish Times coverage, Carol Nolan said that the Irish Times “should be perfectly well aware that the Irish state refused to aggregate data on crime based on nationality and ethnicity, and that was why the experience of other countries was so important.”
“As I said last week, I have constituents telling me all the time that they do not feel safe anymore,” she said. “The Irish Times are asking readers to deny reality – and it seems that they are in denial about migration and sexual crime.”
Deputy Nolan said she has “no faith or confidence in the mainstream Irish media to report accurately or fairly on what is without doubt, a clearly established pattern, seen in a number of EU member states, that correlates high rates of sexual violence with men of particular ethnic and cultural backgrounds.”
“I completely reject any attempt to frame what the coalition is attempting to achieve as anything other than the protection of women and girls,” she said.
“The media can go on believing there is no connection between high rates of immigration and sexual violence if it wants. I prefer to live in the real world where real harm is done,” she said.
Deputy Ken O’Flynn, who also attended the Women’s Coalition on Immigration event, said that he attended to listen to concerns raised by women about safety and accountability within the criminal justice system. His participation was motivated by the need to ensure that issues raised by victims are heard and addressed, he said.
Deputy O’Flynn said he has been clear that sexual violence is a serious crime that must be prosecuted regardless of the background of the perpetrator, and that equality before the law must apply in every case.
He said that he has submitted a Private Members’ Bill to the Parliamentary Drafting Office which would require the publication of anonymised annual statistics on the nationality and immigration status of persons convicted of offences in Ireland. “The aim is to support transparency and better-informed policy discussions, in full compliance with data protection law,” he said.
He said the public debate on criminal justice policy should be informed by accurate data and that raising concerns about equality before the law should not be mischaracterised.
“The issue at hand in relation to ethnicity of offender is made more difficult and more opaque due to the fact that Ireland does not publish detailed crime statistics broken down by nationality or ethnicity of offenders,” he said.
He pointed to Sweden which he said collects statistics on crime by birthplace or immigrant background, mainly through research from the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention (Brå) and court analyses.
“A major Swedish TV investigation analysing 843 rape and attempted-rape court cases found that 58% of convicted offenders had a foreign background (born abroad or with immigrant parents),” he said.
“In cases where the victim did not know the attacker, the proportion of offenders born outside Europe rose to about 75%.”
“Around 38% of people convicted of violent crime in Sweden in 2022 were foreign-born, while immigrants made up roughly 18% of the population, with similar patterns appear for some offences such as assault and robbery,” he said.