Jim O'Keeffe (Cork South West, Fine Gael)

That has been declared unconstitutional. However, the other side is that the entire onus is on the prosecution to prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt. In terms of this Bill and this area of the law, a middle ground could be found that is much fairer and does not debase the fundamental principles of our legal system. That might require the prosecution to make a prima facie case which the accused must answer. It would then be a matter for the accused to prove objectively that ——

See this speech in context