A new bill will make it a criminal offence for grooming a child into a life of crime, with a maximum five year jail term for people who coerce children into the sale and supply of drugs.
Currently an adult who uses a child to commit a crime can be charged with that crime, but this will add an additional offence for grooming.
The new law would apply where an adult compels, coerces, induces or invites a child to engage in criminal activity.
Justice Minister Helen McEntee says the government needs to show that young people cannot be exploited for criminal ends, and that crime should not pass down through generations.
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