Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The effect of this amendment is to delete paragraph (c) of section 24 of the Bill which contains an amendment to section 8 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993. Section 8 of the 1993 Act addresses persons who loiter in a public place in order to solicit or approach another person for the purpose of prostitution. It includes a provision which permits a member of An Garda Síochána to request the person to leave the public place and failure to do so would be an offence. Subsection (2) sets out the penalty.

The provision in paragraph (c) of section 24 which this amendment proposes to delete increases the penalty in section 8(2) of the 1993 Act to one of a class D fine or imprisonment for up to six months or both. The offence is intended to target the public nuisance that may be associated with loitering. However, it only arises where a person fails to follow a direction of An Garda Síochána to leave the area.

It is also important to note that section 8 only applies to those who loiter for the purpose of soliciting another person for the purpose of obtaining that person's services as a prostitute where a person ultimately is seeking to purchase sexual services. The proposed penalty in paragraph (c) is in line with public order offences under the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994 and paragraph (c) should be retained.