Seán Conlan (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)

The basic concept of law is that it must be recognised as having relevance to those to whom it applies. The Statute Law Revision Bill seeks to address a problem which has become apparent in the context of statutes which apply to a bygone age, which deal with events long since past and which fail to have any relevance to modern society or social interaction. The law, like everything else, must evolve to meet the changing needs of society or else it will become irrelevant. What the Bill seeks to address is the debris which was discarded as the process of evolution to which I refer kept pace with social change but which was allowed to remain on the Statute Book. Some of the statutes involved were enacted to address individual circumstances such as the break up of an estate, the winding up of a particular dynasty, etc. This is not how we legislate today, nor has it any relevance to a modern common law system.

It is correct that we should discard obsolete statutes, most of which date back to the 18th and 19th centuries, in order to tidy the Statute Book and bring it up to date. I find it incredible that of the almost 3,800 statutes deal with in the Bill, almost 3,000 are suitable for repeal. It appears that this particular bout of spring cleaning is both long overdue and underlines the obvious need for exercises of this nature to be conducted on a basis more frequent than the current bicentennial rota. The Law Reform Commission does the State quite a service in maintaining a watchful eye on this area and is suitably disposed to conducting the necessary reviews. The commission is seen by legislators, the people and the Judiciary as efficient and impartial and acting in all our interests. One can only imagine the size of the task involved in undertaking such a comprehensive review to lay the foundations for the introduction of the Bill which has been designed to bring order to a system the roots of which stretch far back into our history, while preserving those items which continue to have relevance. In that context, I refer, for example, to the Simpson's Hospital Estate Act 1779 which established an institution that is still in place.

The positive outcomes that will emanate from the passing of this legislation will include a more efficient keeping of statutes, resulting in a reduction of the time spent on research as a result of the removal of obsolete items. The presentation of a modern and efficient Statute Book would definitely cast a more favourable light on our system for those engaged in inward investment. A greatly reduced Statute Book would be capable of delivering a more efficient system and this can only be a plus. Nothing in the Bill diminishes the rights of individuals and it should, therefore, be roundly welcomed.

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