Mr. Ciarán Finlay:

The overall point about the optional protocol is that it does not confer additional rights. What it does is provide an avenue for individuals to enforce their rights where they are not respected at the domestic level. What we see as a real benefit of the optional protocol is that it will hopefully afford public bodies and Departments the opportunity to look at their domestic remedies to see whether they are sufficient. This would ensure that individuals do not have to go to a UN body in Geneva to try to have their rights enforced.

Regarding the second question about potential complaints, we are not aware of any but, as Dr. Hartney mentioned, it is still quite early days. The protocol was ratified in November.