Jim O'Callaghan (Dublin Bay South, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senator for his comments. I am not proprietorial about the Bill. I have no difficulty if the provision I would like to see included in our law is brought through a criminal justice Bill or this Bill, which has been there since 2021. Obviously, there is an advantage. Although I am a Government TD, this is not a Government Bill. However, I would have thought there is an advantage if Government gets behind this, and if it does not get behind this, that it gets behind another amendment to a piece of criminal justice legislation. I think there is certain amount of urgency to it. However, as I said, I am not proprietorial. If there is another proposal that is brought through, I am happy to work alongside that. It is a provision that needs to be included.

Ultimately, with regard to increasing the penalty for knife crime, we need to amend the Firearms and Offensive Weapons Act 1990, as amended. I have tried to do it by way of a single Bill that has been there since 2021. If another Bill is going through, that is fine. However, I do not see it coming, to be honest, unless the Senator has greater insight than I do.