Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party)
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Like the Deputy and many others, I am not a scientific expert in this field by any means. My understanding is that the wide range of techniques that the legislation makes provision for, both DNA and other types of identification process, are primarily about who these individuals are and that is what the legislation is designed to achieve.

In terms of the information that this agency gathers, I would certainly be happy to put in a provision that that information is fully available to all other State bodies for their use for any functions they have, be that the Garda or the coroner. Within provisions as regards GDPR, etc., I am certainly happy for any information that the agency gathers to be freely available.

In terms of the role of the coroner, other than the points I have made in terms of exhumation and identification, I am not looking for this legislation in any way to interfere with the role of the coroner or the existing legislative powers that coroners have. It is important to state we are not looking to interfere with the role of the coroner beyond not having the coroner, this agency and a local authority all having jurisdiction in terms of exhumation at the same time. Such simultaneous jurisdiction is legally confusing and we do not want to have that.