Mr. S?amus Dooley:

The Press Council mentioned already that there is European movement on that. If that is consistent with what the Deputy has described regarding Sweden, it is what we have in mind.

I disagree that the phenomenon is new, in a sense. We now have a name for it. We used to get gagging letters. The practice has now become pervasive and strategic. I worked for ten years as a subeditor within Independent House. There was one businessperson who, as soon as he got wind of the fact that a story was being done about him, automatically sent a solicitor’s letter, even though he did not know what the story would be about. That is actually a SLAPP; it is just that it is now more strategic.

Mr. Kealey made the important point that Ireland is now a destination for libel tourism. That is where the need for a serious harm test comes in. Action on that is vital. We are actually quite an attractive place for this.