Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 8:

In page 41, between lines 16 and 17, to insert the following:

“(5) A report shall subsequently be amended by the Appeal Commissioners to state the result of any appeal to the Circuit Court or the High Court arising out of the determination, together with the result of any subsequent appeal from such a decision of the High Court to the Court of Appeal.”.

I am moving this amendment on behalf of Deputy Michael McGrath. I do not understand why it was not part of the group of amendments we have just discussed because, as a lay person, it appears to be germane to it. Amendment No. 8 briefly proposes the insertion of a new paragraph on page 41, after lines 16 and 17. This section relates to the publication of decisions by the Appeals Commissioners. Subsection (4), after which the provision in the amendment would be inserted, provides that "A report shall be published in a way that, in so far as it is possible, does not reveal the identity of any person whose affairs were dealt with on a confidential basis during the proceedings concerned (being proceedings that were not held in public)." We have disposed of that matter and I propose to add that "A report shall subsequently be amended by the Appeal Commissioners to state the result of any appeal to the Circuit Court or the High Court arising out of the determination, together with the result of any subsequent appeal from such a decision of the High Court to the Court of Appeal." Perhaps the Minister of State will confirm that he understands the purpose of including the Circuit Court. There is merit in what he said and I accept it. However, my point is that where the Appeals Commissioner has made a determination to publish its report, it seems that the outcome of a subsequent appeal to the courts would not be included in the publication of the determinations. Will the Minister of State explain that? I understand that it is a different legal process. The publication of the report, which is specifically provided for in this section, will only be available on the Internet. There will be no hard copies available. If those decisions are subsequently reversed in court, it should be recorded in those reports, perhaps the report of the next year or whenever the decision is made. Is provision made in this regard?

The Minister of State referred earlier to An Bord Pleanála and the final decisions it issues. Sometimes in such cases that is not the end of the matter because it might be referred to the High Court and then be sent back again. The Minister of State has referred to a number of expert bodies with technical knowledge, all of which issue annual reports. Those reports are not completely helpful if they contain decisions that are subsequently appealed to a higher court and ultimately reversed. The reports might meet statutory requirements but they do not give the full picture.

Can a mechanism, through which the full details of the outcome of cases on the conclusion of the process would be published, be put in place such that a person does not have to check the High Court records to get that information?

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