Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)

I move amendment No. 16:

In page 13, between lines 6 and 7, to insert the following:

"(8) A disqualification pursuant to an order of a court referred to in subsection (7)(d), (f), (g) or (h) shall not take effect until the ordinary time for appealing against any such order has expired, or if an appeal is lodged within that time, until any such appeal, or a further appeal therefrom is determined.".

This amendment would permit the usual opportunity to appeal a decision that would disqualify a person from membership of a body. The Minister of State said the paragraphs referred to final situations anyway but this is wrong in law. A clause similar to the amendment is set out in other legislation, such as the Electoral Act 1992. This clause was necessary as a conviction stands pending an appeal. The Minister of State's comment in committee, therefore, was misleading if it suggested that a disqualification would not operate even though an appeal was pending.

See this speech in context