Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 40:

In page 46, to delete lines 18 to 24 and substitute the following:“49.—(1) Where an authorised officer has reasonable grounds for believing that a person is committing or has committed an offence under section 18, 51(4) or 36(4)(a), an offence referred to in section 52(1) or an offence under section 64(4), he or she shall report this to, as the case may be, another officer of the Minister authorised by the Minister or another officer of the local authority concerned, authorised by the manager of that local authority, in that behalf.

(2) An officer who receives a report under subsection (1), if he or she considers it appropriate, may serve on the person a notice in writing (“fixed payment notice”) stating that—”.

This amendment is intended to make clear that the authorisation to issue a penalty is separate from the general authorised officer provisions of the Bill. The Bill provides adequate checks and balances and I am satisfied that it will not be possible for a so-called trigger-happy officer to give out spurious on-the-spot fines. There was a concern among farming organisations in particular, reflected in the commentary by some of the Deputies opposite on Committee Stage, that giving the power to authorised officers to impose on-the-spot fines would mean that farmers would be hit with fines from people seeking to use that power in an overly eager manner. We have made some changes which reflect the views and concerns expressed on Committee Stage and I hope this will allay people's concerns.

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