Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 78:

In page 43, subsection (1), lines 43 and 44, to delete “on the sworn information” and substitute “by information on oath”.

These are minor changes to sections in Part 10, the first of which is purely grammatical. Amendment No. 79 to section 50 will allow for a printed copy of a record that is maintained in electronic form to be used in court. Second, it is to allow for the fact that some data may be kept in electronic form and to clarify that information kept in this way may be used as evidence in proceedings. People may ask what happens in the case of someone altering a computer record. The evidence of a copy could then be rebutted, for example, by producing an unaltered original. It is rather legalistic. The second of the two amendments being discussed together is to ensure one can get sworn statements from authorised officers and use them in court as evidence, rather than obliging officers to travel and attend all the hearings. I believe this proposal makes sense and I hope the Deputies will accept it.