Dick Roche (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)

We discussed this issue on Committee Stage, following which I gave some thought to the contributions made by Deputy Gilmore. With regard to electronic mail, paragraph (f) already provides that a notice must be served by one of the more traditional methods provided for in the earlier paragraphs of section 19. Service of the notice by electronic mail is effectively an additional method rather than an alternative one. If the Deputy considers the matter, he will see that depending on e-mail alone could lead to some difficulty. The purpose of providing for service of a notice by e-mail is to facilitate speedy transmission. It could also facilitate reproduction of additional copies of the notice. At any rate, it does not seem practical to me to provide for a system that confirms that a recipient of an e-mail has read it. That would land us in difficulties and I ask the Deputy not to press the amendment.

See this speech in context