Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

Section 29 of the Offences Against the State Act allows for the issue of warrants on a non-judicial basis by senior Garda officers in certain circumstances. The committee that examined the Offences Against the State Act in the aftermath of the Good Friday Agreement examined that provision and in its report noted that: "The power to issue a warrant under section 29 is a vital weapon in the armoury of the gardaí in their fight against the activity of illegal organisations." The committee also said: "Given the utility and importance of this power the committee does not wish to make any recommendations that would undermine its effectiveness." The majority of the committee went on to make a recommendation on the time period for the execution of the warrant, but that is a different issue and not the one we are dealing with. As Deputy Ó Snodaigh proposes to amend the Offences Against the State Act to end what the committee that examined the Act said was a vital weapon in the armoury of the Garda Síochána, I do not propose to accept it.

On the latest reports from the Morris tribunal, I am in difficulty in that I had to put that matter before the court. As I signalled on Committee Stage, I intend to seek an expurgated release, in advance of anything else, of the general considerations of that report because it is important to get some of them into the public domain sooner rather than later. I must defer to the High Court, which has seisin of this matter now and I will do it if I can. If I cannot, the House will have to bear with me that the matter will be decided by the High Court in its own time. As I indicated on Committee Stage, the Morris tribunal report indicated unhappiness with the way police-issued warrants could be issued by people involved in the investigations and could be kept in possession of gardaí for execution at a time of their choosing.

Rather than have a debate on the blind in this House, I decided to modify the general recommendations of the Leahy committee that the power be extended to all serious offences and let this matter lie until the autumn.

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