Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)

I thank Deputies who contributed to this debate over two days on an important issue with regard to matters concerning US arrest warrants and extradition. There have been interesting and thoughtful contributions to the debate as well as wild, wonderful and imaginative contributions that do not seem to be based on an understanding of how the legislation works, its objectives and its benefits, in particular to this State, in ensuring we protect our people from those engaged in serious criminality. As best I can, I want to respond to what has been said by Deputies but I hope they will forgive me if I do not refer to everyone by name. Some of the same points were made by different Members.

I thank Deputy Calleary for the support for the Bill expressed by him on behalf of Fianna Fáil. I agree with the sentiments he expressed, that we must ensure our legislation is sufficiently robust to meet existing challenges and those that may arise in the future. He made reference to cyber crime and the threat it poses to the State. It is a threat posed across the world and in respect of which there are no territorial boundaries. It is an issue the Government takes most seriously and it is being taken seriously at European Union level. The issue requires substantial co-operation between European Union countries, and on a global basis between countries across the world, in identifying those who engage in that area of criminality. It is important to be conscious of the risks they pose to disrupting essential services or to accessing information that should be kept private, particularly through the manner in which they are prepared to violate data protection laws to access information that should remain private to the individuals concerned. It is an area that classically illustrates the need for international co-operation in dealing with law enforcement issues.

I am not in a position to give a timeframe for the review of the legislation. It will involve more than a consolidation of existing legislation. My original speech referred to the number of times it proved necessary to amend the European arrest warrant legislation. It is desirable that all law in this area is ultimately contained in a single consolidated Bill but it may also be that other reforms are required. The review will be a thorough and fundamental review of how we have implemented the European arrest warrant provisions in Ireland, legislatively and administratively. The aim is to ensure we have a system that is legislatively robust and administratively cost efficient while at the same time protective of the constitutional and human rights of the persons whose surrender is sought. I listened with wonderment to some of the contributions made by Deputies who seem to be extraordinarily and blissfully unaware of the provisions contained in section 37 of the European Arrest Warrant Act 2003, which provide express protection for human rights under the European Convention on Human Rights.

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