Aengus Ó Snodaigh (Dublin South Central, Sinn Fein)

I am dealing with section 5. I am suggesting that the measures in section 5 will not deter would-be criminals. I am perhaps pre-empting the Minister's reply that the Garda has the required resources, which he said in response to my last question. The Garda Síochána and the wider system, including the courts system, does not have the required resources. What the Minister is doing in this section is to introduce more confusion.

If more gardaí were released from desk duties or other tasks that could be civilianised, they could be used to properly tackle and implement the existing law, which has not been properly utilised. The laws are in place but, for some reason, they have not been used. We must ask how many court cases actually collapse. We keep coming back to this question because it is what we are told is the reason for these new laws and why such cases will be heard in the Special Criminal Court. How many cases collapse on a technicality because the DPP, the Garda Síochána or someone else makes a simple mistake? How many cases collapse due to lack of evidence or having witnesses who are not credible? How many cases collapse because of a hung jury? As other Deputies have asked, how many cases collapse on the basis of intimidation of witnesses or juries?

This is the type of information we would have if we had sat down and teased this out on an ongoing basis over a month or even over a full week in committee, where we could have called witnesses to ascertain whether what is being proposed is proportionate. What we have at present falls short of the standards we should have in the justice system in terms of protection of witnesses and protection of juries. If we had taken that road, we might have progressed further.

I believe the arguments I put forward in 2006 stand in regard to these issues. We have not tried the simple steps first, namely, one does not go down the road of introducing new laws and concepts when the existing laws and concepts are adequate but have not been properly used. While I could say more, I will conclude on that point.

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