Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

Members are very witty tonight. In answer to Deputy Ó Snodaigh's point, at least on this occasion the Human Rights Commission was definite and did not think it was a good idea. In amnesia cases there is another argument. The Canadian Supreme Court addressed this without legislation. It stated that the Canadian view of constitutional justice allowed it to reverse the common law rule in this area. We have our Human Rights Commission and the Canadians have their Supreme Court but we, as legislators, must make our own judgment on the issue. Either we leave the law as it is and people are allowed to walk away from solemn statements with no consequence at all, inducing outrage among the public at what it regards as selective amnesia, or we do not tackle the issue.

I believe that if Deputy Ó Snodaigh put that point squarely to 300 citizens in Dublin South-Central, they would support what we were doing in this House. He would find that only a small minority of opinion would believe it wrong to do what we are doing. I am not suggesting that right and wrong can always be determined numerically, but I am satisfied that the great majority of parties in this House believe that this reform is necessary.

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