Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Deputy. With regard to how I view the Deputy's amendments, I am very pleased that I changed the merchant shipping Bill because the Deputy pointed to an issue. As he will recall, I felt at the time that I could not accept the exact amendment he put forward to me but we changed the Bill. To be fair, I know the Deputy still wants a further change in regard to the Bill but the point stands that because the Deputy put forward an amendment in regard to a Bill that was in front of the House that pointed to an area in which it could be strengthened, the Bill was then changed and improved. I am also pleased that, for example, on another piece of road traffic legislation in regard to road clamping and the regulation of that sector, which I took through the Seanad and which will come to the Dáil in the near future, changes were made in the Bill in the Seanad because of amendments and points that were made by the Senators in that Chamber. I just make that point to the Deputy because, leaving aside the time pressure I am operating under because of the urgency of the matter, if I had felt the amendment the Deputy put forward was going to improve and change the nature of the Bill, I would have accepted it. I want the Deputy to be clear on that.

It is an important principle in regard to how we consider legislation, and particularly how we consider amendments that are put forward to me from Members of the Opposition, that they are evaluated on their merits. The only reason I contacted the Deputy earlier today was because I genuinely felt, on foot of the advice I had received, that if I had changed the Bill in the way in which the Deputy wished, it would have meant it could not have achieved the objectives I believe are vital.

With regard to some of the specific points, the Deputy made a point about the penalty actually changing because of this legislation being, I hope, enacted by the Dáil later today. With respect, that is a point of difference I have with the Deputy in terms of my own understanding of how the Bill will operate. It goes back to the debate we had earlier. For me, because there was clarity on the penalty that was going to be accepted by the person when the person accepted that an offence had been committed, and because that penalty has not changed, that is the reason I do not believe the magnitude of penalty has changed in the way the Deputy does. I respect completely where he is coming from.

How this would work in practical terms is that if somebody believed he or she would get three penalty points across the period of greatest concern for the Deputy, he or she would receive three penalty points due to the enactment of this Bill. One of the many things on which we will have clarity due to the enactment of the Bill is that the quantum of the penalty will not change. I ask the Deputy to consider this in the context of the point he has made. I understand the Deputy would be concerned if the level of penalty changed in any way.

In regard to the reference made to the European Court of Human Rights and the role of that body of law in Irish law, as somebody who has had responsibility for European affairs, I wish to make clear my understanding of the importance of that body of law to Irish law, culture and political life. Like the Deputy, I am proud of Ireland's legal and legislative history in that regard. While he would expect it to be the case, it is important I make it explicit to him, given his level of concern, that under no circumstances would I bring forward a Bill if I believed it would in any way contravene the Constitution or any other body of law that we subscribe to.

The Deputy asked for the rationale for the "saver" clause in this Bill. The sole reason this is included and that I ask the support of the House for it is to make explicit that the passage of this law does not in any way affect a matter that is currently before the courts. I say this as somebody who believes strongly in and accords significant value to our liberal values in how we govern ourselves. A cornerstone of all of that is absolute respect for the different spheres of power within public life. They do one thing - and it is the courts that much of this will be tested - and the Oireachtas does something different. The only reason this clause is being introduced is to make clear to the Oireachtas and beyond that the legislation being introduced fundamentally respects the right of an individual to take the law as it was then to the courts. I wish to make that clear in this Bill.

See this speech in context