Martin Cullen (Waterford, Fianna Fail)

I move amendment No. 57:

In page 45, between lines 24 and 25, to insert the following:

"(15) The Investigation Unit may, before commencing an investigation under this section, make enquiries to determine whether an investigation is warranted.

(16) A railway undertaking shall, as soon as practicable following notification under subsection (14), provide to the Investigation Unit details of all records held by it, and all information known to it, that may be relevant to an investigation under this section and shall immediately thereafter notify the Investigation Unit of any further relevant records which come into its possession and any further relevant information that becomes known to it.

(17) An answer, statement or declaration given to an inspector as part of an investigation under this section shall not be admissible as evidence in civil or criminal proceedings.".

The new subsections proposed are a practical measure to avoid the railway incident investigation unit of the commission launching a formal investigation with all the attendant requirements before it is clear that an investigation is warranted. Some simple initial inquiries may save unnecessary work. The new subsections proposed provide that following notification of the commencement of an investigation, a railway undertaking must provide for the investigation unit details of relevant records held by it and information known to it that may not be recorded. Any further records or information that arise must also be notified to the investigation unit.

On Committee Stage my predecessor accepted the merit of Deputy Naughten's amendment No. 35 which proposed that a railway undertaking be obliged to furnish all relevant documentation following the commencement of an investigation. However, I was concerned that the commission could be inundated with unnecessary documentation. Hence the requirement for the notification of the records rather than provision for them.

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