Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour)

I am not against the amendment per se, but it states that the Courts Service "may" from time to time, publish in such a manner as it considers appropriate, including on the Internet, a list of the names and addresses of persons who have failed to pay fines imposed on them by the due date of payment. I assume, since the word "may" is used that there is no obligation on the Courts Service to publish the names. Without being sarcastic, when somebody presents himself or herself before the court, there is a good chance the court reporter from The Cork man or The Leitrim Observer or any other local newspaper will publish the person's name in the following edition. I suggest the persons concerned will have been subjected to enough embarrassment through that. There may be circumstances where this imposes another administrative cost on the Courts Service. I do not think the Minister has set out how much this will cost to administer. By virtue of use of the word "may", I wonder if it will ever be used at all. That is a question, by the way.

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