Mattie McGrath (Tipperary South, Fianna Fail)

I wish to share time with Deputies Conlon, Collins and Johnny Brady.

The subject matter of the Bill before the House is of considerable interest to Members and citizens. It is also an issue in which I have a keen interest. We are all aware of cases in which persons have entered a house or property without adequate excuse and with criminal intent, resulting in injury or death. Such cases have fuelled a debate on whether the law strikes the right balance between the rights of an occupier and those of a trespasser. There is a genuinely held view that while the Non-Fatal Offences against the Person Act 1997 legislates adequately for a case of self-defence in most circumstances, it does not give protection to a person who finds intruders entering his or her home with criminal intent. While I am fully aware of the efficacy of the current legislation, I also share the understandable public concern that the best legislative resources should be made available to provide for the protection of the home or dwelling.

I am a firm believer in the need for tough legislative provisions to combat all types of criminal activity and make no apology for fully supporting legislation passed in the previous Dáil session to deal with a wide spectrum of criminal law. The Bill before us is not adequate, well thought out or sufficiently strong to justify my support. It is, in effect, a copy of an earlier Bill introduced in 2006 and contains a number of a flaws which would make it inoperable for the purpose for which it is intended. For example, the term "dwelling house" does not include the curtilage or area immediately surrounding a home. This is a major flaw because an intruder may not have entered a home but may be in a person's yard or, in the case of farmers, adjoining farmhouses or other parts of the property in which the farmer attends to his or her lawful business.

A further flaw in the legislation is its failure to make distinctions between types of trespassers, for example, between a young person who may stray onto a property and a bogus caller who uses a sales pitch as a pretext to access the property. On many occasions they are not legitimate sales people and, as many others have found, it is difficult to dislodge them, whether from a house, farmyard or an adjacent area.

The special status of a home or dwelling has always been linked to the dignity of the individual. An attack in the home has unique characteristics and is very different from other forms of attack. Given the potentially emotive nature of such an encounter, I suspect that a great many people share this opinion. As we are all aware, Article 40.5 of the Constitution contains a specific provision that "the dwelling of every citizen is inviolable and shall not be forcibly entered save in accordance with law".

References have been made to pendant alarms. As a board member of Muintir na Tire, which runs the national community alert programme, I am disappointed that the scheme has been suspended. It has not been ended by any means, but it is subject to review. I have made submissions to that review, as has Munitir na Tire and I hope many more interested parties will do so. Pendant alarms constitute a vital piece of equipment, especially for the elderly and other vulnerable people. The scheme was subject to a lot of abuse, however, and was not effective. There are only three suppliers. I know one of them had a spot check of over 5,000 pendants, which were fitted at enormous cost to the taxpayer, but they were lying dormant because the annual monitoring charge had not been paid. This is a shameful waste. The money would be better spent if the monitoring fees were paid for by the Department on an ongoing basis. It is pointless having this infrastructural investment if the pendants are not being used.

The proposals of an bord snip nua from Mr. McCarthy and his Dublin 4 friends must be rejected out of hand. They have forgotten about rural Ireland. We must support the gardaí who do a difficult job. They need our support and the community alert scheme strives to bolster the relationship between such organisations, the public and An Garda Síochána. There is no replacement for the Garda on the beat, who has time to have a cup of tea and a chat with people, especially those living alone. It is also important that gardaí visit schools, thus engendering a respect for the law among young people. We must maintain and nurture that relationship. The removal of any more Garda stations and allied resources would be a huge blow in that respect. Gardaí cannot solve crimes without community support. That is one of the reasons this Bill is somewhat premature. We should all examine the matter together to try to perfect the legislation which deals with a hugely emotive issue.

Many people cannot sleep properly, especially with the onset of autumn. In addition, when the clocks go back next month, it will get dark at 5 p.m. so people living alone will have a long period during which they will see nobody else. With the removal of some postal services, people living alone may not receive visits from anybody.

I am currently involved, as are others around the country, in establishing a listening service called Good Morning South Tipperary. Data from companies monitoring pendant alarms show that many people use such pendants not because of attacks or accidents but due to sheer loneliness and isolation. We have found from telephoning such people that they are happy to engage in conversation. Their faces light up and they are in a better state of mind and health when they have contact with others. People who have peace of mind are more relaxed and healthy, which in itself reduces health care costs.

Everyone is entitled to be considered innocent until proven guilty, and we must respect that legal tenet at all times. However, I have serious concerns having had considerable experience of the court system following my own incident. The situation in the courts is very frustrating and some cases can continue for ten years. Justice delayed is justice denied. It is also frustrating for gardaí when they have a book of evidence, yet cases cannot come to court.

The free legal aid area has been totally abused and ripped off. People with previous records have availed of free legal aid, but that service should be denied to them. There should be some recompense whereby they must pay their share. I am not talking about those who are innocent and have not been convicted.

We should all stick together to try to get a comprehensive Bill to deal with these matters.

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