David Stanton (Cork East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Amendment No. 8 provides the right for a victim to be accompanied in court by a support worker. I support the Deputy's aim in proposing this amendment. A general provision, however, is not required in bail hearings as criminal proceedings are held in public. As such, the victim has an existing right to be accompanied by any person or persons he or she wishes during the court proceedings.

Section 4(2) of the Bail Act 1997 makes provision for the court to exclude the public from a bail hearing in certain circumstances while persons directly concerned with the proceedings and such other persons as the court may permit are entitled to remain. I will examine the provision to see if it needs to be strengthened to ensure that a support worker will always be entitled to remain. The Deputy raised a similar issue in the context of the Victims Rights Bill and I agree that it is an important protection for victims. I know the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality is already examining what may be required to ensure that the victim of an offence has the right to be accompanied in court by a support worker during any criminal proceedings.

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