Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

Before dealing with this amendment, I will provide some background. As Deputies are aware, I obtained the approval of the Government last December for the establishment of an additional Special Criminal Court consisting of seven members. My objectives in this regard were twofold. First, dissident republican groups continue to pose a serious threat to the State. In this regard, I am determined to ensure that where persons who are intent on challenging the legitimacy and authority of the State are charged in regard to criminal offences, that such persons are brought swiftly to justice. In this context, the speedy resolution of trials before the Special Criminal Court will serve to demonstrate the State's resolve to deal seriously with any activity which is a threat to the State.

Second, I am also mindful of the need to avoid any difficulty or challenge on the basis that persons are being held on remand for lengthy periods of time pending trial. There are currently five cases before the Special Criminal Court and the earliest date available for a new trial is October 2005. Cases coming before that court can be complex and lengthy, as we have seen, and with only one court available, even one or two extra cases could greatly increase delays.

On 30 July 2004, in the case of Colm Maguire v. the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Supreme Court confirmed that, on application for bail, the question of whether a trial would take place is an admissible and important consideration. The court stated that if a long-deferred trial were in prospect, bail would be granted where otherwise it might be refused. As this House knows, following the referendum on bail, one of the grounds for refusal of bail, as a matter of constitutional and statute law, is where the prosecutor establishes there is a likelihood that, if admitted to bail, the accused is likely to commit a different serious offence.

That particular ground was introduced after a referendum, proposed by my predecessor, Nora Owen. However, the Colm Maguire case seems to indicate that this particular line of objection can itself be compromised if the State cannot provide an early date for trial. This presents a difficulty. For example, if a group of people is found in a paramilitary training camp and the Garda indicates to the court that it is objecting to bail on the basis that these were clearly paramilitary subversives intent on destabilising the State and carrying out serious crimes, it should not be the case that these legitimate objections to bail should be overturned by considerations such as the degree of delay in securing a Special Criminal Court trial by reason of that court's existing commitments.

These amendments do not in any sense indicate that I have flagged in my complete belief that the preferable form of trial for indictable offences is jury trial. I am presenting no qualification of that view. As long as there is a need for a Special Criminal Court, however, those who are brought before that court must be dealt with in a timely fashion. My objective is not to institutionalise the court or make it more permanent. On the contrary, the purpose of this legislation is to ensure that the injustice of delay to both prosecutor and accused in the criminal process is obviated to the greatest extent possible, even in the special circumstances where the provisions of the Constitution for the establishment of Special Criminal Courts have, unfortunately, been necessarily invoked.

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