Crime records UK courts failed to notify Ireland of at least 18,000 convictions of Irish nationals

Of the convictions, 109 were killers, 81 were rapists, and one man was found guilty of both crimes.

Stock image: Court Room

---

March 08 2021 02:21 PM

UK courts failed to pass on the conviction of European criminals to their EU home countries, of which around 18,000 were Irish.

In total, 112,490 criminal convictions were not sent to relevant EU capitals over an eight-year period due to a massive computer failure, it recently emerged.

Of those, at least 17,996 are Irish, representing the second largest group of EU criminal convictions. Fine Gael TD Neale Richmond, who also serves as the spokesperson on European Affairs, expressed his disappointment with this failure of communication.

“This needs to be raised formally and seriously,” he told the Media

“Why did these lapses happen, how will [we] cooperate going further and will the UK Government commit to meeting their responsibilities in keeping their neighbours safe?”

“These revelations are extremely disappointing and raise many concerns now in the post Brexit era where scope for formal cooperation between the UK and remaining EU Member States like Ireland will diminish.”

Neale Richmond TD

Of the convictions, 109 were killers, 81 were rapists, and one man was found guilty of both crimes.

This failure to comply with EU law and notify member states was first discovered at least six years ago, and a provisional plan to update them had been drawn up at that time by the UK’s Criminal Records Office.

However, according to the Guardian, it was not acted upon amid concerns about the “reputational impact” on Britain.

If a foreign offender is sentenced, then Acro Criminal Records Office, a UK body responsible for international police data sharing, is legally required under EU law to alert police in convicted criminals’ home country.

Read More

• Seven arrests as gardaí target suspected extortion plot
• Sex-text creep who terrorised woman ordered by judge to move out of town
• Kinahan drug lieutenant Barry Fowler spotted in fake DHL delivery van despite not working for firm

This issue mainly affects those with dual nationality, who are rarely deported from the UK, even after lengthy prison sentences. As such, EU member states may have been left in the dark as to the crimes of criminals if they decide to move.

Of the total criminal convictions which have not been passed on to EU member states, 19,565 have now belatedly been sent on to Poland. A further 12,466 have been sent to Romania.

After that, in decreasing order the remainder are Latvia, Slovakia, Czechia, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany.

Another 10,000 convictions belong to various other EU states.