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

I move amendment No. 27:

In page 23, line 1, to delete “14 years” and substitute “18 years”.

Amendments Nos. 27 and 28 are alternatives to amendments Nos. 26 and 29, which were proposed by Deputies Shortall and Catherine Murphy, and make the necessary provision. The first amendment extends the presumptive prohibition on a personal cross-examination by an accused of a witness up to the age of 14 years to all witnesses under 18 years of age, which is also in line with the provisions to be introduced by means of section 35 relating to evidence from behind a screen and the removal of wigs and gowns when a person under 18 years of age is giving evidence in court. This provision will apply to witnesses up to the age of 18 years who are giving evidence in proceedings covered by Part lll of the Criminal Evidence Act 1992, those being, proceedings relating to a sexual offence, an offence involving violence or the threat of violence to a person, an offence under the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998 or a trafficking offence under the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act 2008.

Amendment No. 28 will provide a discretionary power to the court to prohibit the personal cross-examination by the accused of adult complainants unless it is in the interests of justice to do so. This section is limited to proceedings involving sexual offences and to complainants only. Such an amendment has been requested by those who represent victims of sexual offences and has also been called for by Members across the House. As such, I am happy to table these amendments. They reflect the intention behind the amendments of Deputies Shortall and Catherine Murphy, which are not being taken.