Frank Fahey (Galway West, Fianna Fail)

The amendment would add a subsection which states:

Where the State has ratified an international instrument providing that a specified offence shall be contrary to international law, the Minister may by order apply this Act, with such modifications as are appropriate, to such offence as if it were an ICC offence.

The Attorney General has advised that the amendment would run contrary to the Rome Statute because it would arguably amount to an attempt to extend the jurisdiction of the ICC beyond the range of offences currently covered by the statute. If the states parties to the statute wish to extend the jurisdiction of the court at some future date, then the legislation can be amended to do so. However, the proposed amendment may also breach Article 15.2.1° of the Constitution as amounting to an unauthorised delegation of legislative power.

See this speech in context