Martin Kenny (Sligo-Leitrim, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 4:

In page 9, between lines 25 and 26, to insert the following: “(9) In respect of relevant offences to which this Act applies, where an application under section 3 of the Criminal Law (Rape) Act 1981 is made during a trial, having not previously been requested or notified at a preliminary trial hearing, the trial court must be satisfied granting any application is likely to—

(a) facilitate the expeditious and efficient conduct of the proceedings, and

(b) result in the least disruption to the jury and witnesses in the trial of the offence.”.

We consider that the language is not strong enough. During trials requests could be made for information on victims' sexual history, which could increase disruption and leave them trying to find legal representation quickly. They would have to go into a pretrial hearing without knowing whether it would delve into their sexual history. The language in the section does not deal with that in a manner we consider appropriate. For this reason, we propose the amendment.