Dáil debates

Wednesday, 13 June 2018

Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998 and Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2009: Motions

 

5:00 pm

Photo of Charles FlanaganCharles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I move:

That Dáil Éireann resolves that sections 2 to 4, 6 to 12, 14 and 17 of the Offences Against the State (Amendment) Act 1998 (No. 39 of 1998) shall continue in operation for the period beginning on the 30 June 2018 and ending on 29 June 2019.

I wish to share time with Deputy Brophy.

The House will recall that the 1998 Act was a necessary and wholly proportionate response to the barbaric murder by the Real IRA of 29 innocent people at Omagh in August 1998, almost 20 years ago. These robust provisions of the criminal law play an important role in enabling the Garda authorities and the courts to face down the threat from such terrorism. In accordance with the Act, I have laid before the House a report on the operation of the relevant provisions over the past 12 months. I will not take up the limited time by going through in detail each of the sections but I signal to the House that one element of section 9, that is to say, subsection (1)(b), is the subject of ongoing litigation. It was declared invalid by the High Court in February but that declaration is being appealed. The remainder of section 9 is not in question. The report sets out in more detail than in previous years an assessment of the security position and while I do not intend to rehearse that, I will highlight some aspects.

There remains a real and persistent threat from republican paramilitary groups on this island, the so called dissidents. These groups vehemently oppose peace and democracy and have spent 20 years trying to destroy the Good Friday Agreement and all it stands for. I am determined that these terrorists will not succeed and the bullet or bomb will not prevail over the ballot box. I refer also to the threat posed by jihadist-type terrorism.

The raw brutality of the attacks targeting innocent people that we have seen, including on our nearest European neighbours, is a stark reminder of the vulnerability of all open democracies to this threat.

I pay particular tribute to the women and men of An Garda Síochána, who continue to work tirelessly to preserve life and to counter all threats from terrorism. I pay tribute also to the men and women of the police and security services in Northern Ireland, with whom the Garda work closely every single day to enhance the safety of all communities on this island.

The Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2009 was a response to difficulties facing the justice system from certain organised criminal gangs behaving as though they were beyond the law. Section 8 provides that four particularly serious organised crime offences should be tried in the Special Criminal Court, subject to the DPP not directing otherwise. Again, I will not delay the House by repeating the detail of what is set out in the report I have laid before the House in accordance with section 8. That report notes that no cases came for trial before the Special Criminal Court under section 8.

No one can be under any illusion about the threat that society and the criminal justice system face from organised criminal gangs that will stop at nothing in pursuit of their criminal activities. The Garda authorities are working intensively to bear down on these criminal gangs and to disrupt their activities. The Garda deserves praise for the considerable success it has achieved against these gangs, and with the Government's support that work will continue.

As set out in the two reports I have laid before the House, it is the clear view of An Garda Síochána that the provisions in the 1998 and 2009 Acts continue to be most important in ongoing efforts in the fight against terrorism and serious organised crime. On this basis, on the basis of the information set out in the report and on the advice of the Garda authorities at senior level, I propose that the House should approve the continued operation of the relevant provisions of the 1998 and 2009 Acts for a further 12 months commencing 30 June.

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