Parole Act 2019

Procedures of Board

14. (1) The procedure of the Board in relation to the exercise of its functions shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, be such as shall be determined by the Board, and the Board shall, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, make provision for the following:

(a) the making, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, of a scheme or schemes for the granting of legal aid to—

(i) parole applicants,

(ii) parolees, and

(iii) relevant victims who wish to make a submission to the Board,

for the purposes of the consideration by the Board of an application for parole or of the revocation of a parole order;

(b) giving the relevant person (within the meaning of section 13 (9)) and his or her legal representative a copy of any document furnished to the Board by any person other than the relevant person, and an indication in writing of the nature and source of any information relating to the matter which has come to notice in the course of the application or consideration, as the case may be, other than where the Board is of the opinion that exceptional circumstances exist that warrant such a document or indication, as the case may be, not being so given;

(c) enabling the relevant person and his or her legal representative to attend a meeting with the Board as provided for under section 13 (1)(c);

(d) enabling the relevant person to present his or her case to the Board in person or through a legal representative;

(e) the persons who are required to be notified of any action taken under this Act and the manner in which they are to be so notified, including the notification of the relevant victim of an application for parole, which notification shall include an explanation of the process by which a person is considered by the Board for parole and details of how the victim may participate in that process;

(f) enabling the relevant victim to make submissions to the Board, whether in person, through his or her legal representative, or in writing—

(i) where the Board is considering an application for parole or the revocation of a parole order, or

(ii) where the Board considers it appropriate, where the Board is considering the variation of a condition attaching to, or the date of release in, a parole order;

(g) requiring the parole applicant to be given a copy of the draft decision of the Board in an application for parole and enabling him or her to make written submissions on the draft prior to its finalisation;

(h) specifying the time periods within which anything is required to be done under this Act, including the time period within which the Board shall make a determination on an application for parole;

(i) specifying conditions, where it considers it appropriate, to which all parolees, or a specified class of parolees, shall be subject;

(j) the keeping of statistical and other records relating to the exercise by it of its functions.

(2) In determining its procedures under subsection (1), the Board shall have regard to the need for it to exercise its functions in an effective manner and in accordance with fair procedures.

(3) The Board shall publish procedures determined by it under this section in such manner as it considers appropriate.