Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

It is certainly my intention and that of the Minister of State, Deputy Fahey, to create an offence of corporate manslaughter. The reason it cannot be included in the health and safety at work Bill is that the Attorney General has advised that it has wider implications which go beyond the health and safety of workers. If a company knowingly leaves a product on the market, for example, a pharmaceutical product which has serious effects and which could kill people, that cannot be dealt with in the health and safety at work Bill. We are obliged to take the advice of the Attorney General. Discussions are ongoing with the Attorney General as to how best we could introduce an offence of this kind into legislation, which we all support.

The existing provision in the 1989 Act relates to the responsibility of a board of a company and directors and managers of a company. It is apparently extraordinarily difficult to succeed in convicting people because of the weakness of the current legislation. That will be substantially strengthened to make it easier for somebody to be prosecuted on indictment or convicted following a prosecution on indictment. That is the intention regarding the legislation. The proposed Bill will go to the Government in the next two or three weeks.

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