James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As Deputy Jim O'Callaghan said, we support the legislation and the review. There are various Acts on the Statute Book of a similar nature relating to theft and firearms offences, the misuse of drugs, surveillance and the proceeds of crime. What all of these instruments have in common is that they provide for sanction without a finding of fault against an individual or without a conviction. The presumption of innocence is a valuable pillar of the justice system and we do not intrude on it lightly. These measures are necessary and proportionate, but the review process could be improved by paying more than lip service to the exercise through having a brief debate and also by improving consistency across the multiple Acts in the space. Some provide for a review of documents laid before the House, while others provide for a judicial review every number of years. A number of Acts are subject to review in the Chamber, while some are not subject to review at all. The standardisation of approach across all of the legislation would benefit us hugely.

The UN committee against torture is due to review the Irish system in July. In the review it will examine the powers of detention. It may be timely to investigate what review system could be put in place in that context. In a scenario where the British Prime Minister talked about tearing up the UN Convention on Human Rights during a recent debate, it is important that we be vigilant and protect the criminal justice system from every eventuality.

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