THE Department of Justice has laid out its proposals for a Crime Council which would allow communities and other interests a say in crime policy.
The council would be an advisory body presenting "policy options" - it would not have a decision making role.
The Department envisages a council including the social partners, the community or voluntary sector, local authorities, academics, Government officials as well as representatives from the different sectors of the criminal justice system.
It would be independent from the Department of Justice and ideally would be part funded by the State, and through "a mix of grants, membership fees or donations".
The document argues that there is a danger the planned council would be a "talking shop" of little value, unless it took into account the limits of the State's resources.
"It would clearly be essential, if the work of the council is to have a real impact on crime policy and strategy formulation, that its proceedings and output should be characterised by a sense of realism - particularly, but not exclusively, in the area of costs," it says.
"The council would need to cost its proposals, to look perhaps at possibilities for redeployment of resources, increased efficiencies and so on."
It would also need to take into account "the personal rights and freedoms of individuals which ... inevitably come under strain as crime levels increase".
The Department says it is not opposed to any other structure for the council which might be considered appropriate. But it recommends following the structure of a council in Denmark which includes 46 organisations, meets once a year and is run under "the guiding principle that tackling crime is not just a matter for the police but is everybody's responsibility".
Reinforcing this point the Department of Justice paper also says that there is "merit in asking all relevant departments, as a first step, to indicate precisely how they propose to contribute to crime reduction".
Officials have previously noted the need for more coordinated thinking about crime - for example ensuring the layout of new housing estates does not include "blind alleys" which could encourage drug dealing or other illegal activities.
The Department says a coordinating group would seek to ensure greater co operation among the State bodies whose work can have an impact on crime levels.