THE proposed new Children Bill, due to go before the Dail in its next session, has had a qualified welcome, although the Opposition has claimed much of the credit for it.
The Fianna Fail spokesman on justice, Mr John O'Donoghue, said two of the measures in the Bill the imposition of a curfew on young people charged with criminal offences and making a bailsperson responsible for compliance with bail conditions were opposed by the Government when proposed by Fianna Fail last year.
Ms Mairin Quill (PDs) said the basis for the legislation came from the select committee on juvenile justice she chaired in 1992. "It is nothing short of a scandal that it has taken the Government four years to get these proposals to the stage of Cabinet approval," she said.
"In the meantime, children and young people all over the country have been dealt with under an act of 1908."
She urged the Government to ensure a speedy enactment of the Bill saying a good, workable national strategy of crime prevention and early intervention, locally implemented, was needed to address the problem of crime among young people.
The National Youth Council of Ireland welcomed the proposal to raise the age of criminal responsibility from seven to 10 and eventually 12, but which it would like to be 14.
"The focus of the Bill away from detention and into other forms of sanction is welcome," said Mr Peter Byrne, director of the council. He also welcomed a special courts system for juveniles and the establishment of residential special care units as a last resort.
However, he expressed concern about the curfew proposal. "Curfews may work for a lot of people, but in some cases the home environment is the cause of crime in the first place. The same problem could also arise in the proposal to make parents financially accountable for their children's actions."