Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

In any consideration of an individual's constitutional rights, such as the right to a livelihood or ownership of property, the doctrine of proportionality would apply. In the case of Cox v. Ireland, the Supreme Court considered section 34 of the Offences Against the State Act 1939 which provides that a State employee who is convicted of a scheduled offence in the Special Criminal Court shall forfeit pension, superannuation allowance and gratuity earned for service done before the conviction. The Supreme Court determined that while the State was entitled to take into consideration the public interest of peace and order, section 34 was disproportionate as it bore no relation to any question of public peace.

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