Results 2,701-2,720 of 19,401 for speaker:Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: On a point of order, the Minister is not sticking to the amendments under discussion. He made the same point of order during my contribution earlier.

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: There is merit in examining this. I support Fine Gael and Labour in attempts to ensure that we examine this at some stage. Gardaí are frustrated when a technicality is found in what they believe is an open and shut case. We will not be granted the time to conduct such a close examination here. We should have a single Bill dealing only with that matter. As with the last Bill the Minister...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: Yes, the Minister is a serial legislator. It would be better if these were single issues because we will not be able to deal with all these today or on Report Stage next week. They deserve more consideration than we have given to them.

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I move amendmentNo. 21: In page 6, lines 33 and 34, to delete all words from and including "one" in line 33 down to and including "person" in line 34 and substitute "an employee of the Probation Service authorised". This seeks to ensure that if electronic tagging is agreed to, those authorised are members of the probation and welfare service rather than privatise another part of the justice...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: If it is an ineffective use of public servants' time, it is an ineffective use of any person's time. The person does not have to be a probation officer but an employee of the probation and welfare service. Another grade could be set up specifically to undertake this task but it would be staffed by public servants and they would be answerable to the probation and welfare service. They could...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I move amendmentNo. 23: In page 7, to delete lines 23 to 26. This amendment involves the deletion of paragraph (g). This is a major change because a judge should make his or her own decision on the basis of the application before the Bench and not on the basis of previous decisions taken by judges as regards applications relating to totally different charges. That is one of the concerns I...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I move amendmentNo. 24: In page 8, line 15, to delete "may" and substitute "shall". If a court believes publication would prejudice a trial, then I believe it should definitely prevent this. Hence the change from "may" to "shall" to ensure that in all cases where a court believes a future trial might be prejudiced, publication is prevented. Amendment No. 29 would have the same effect, to...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I move amendmentNo. 25: In page 8, line 23, after "order" to insert the following: "provided this would not in the view of the court prejudice the applicant's right to a fair trial". This amendment is self-explanatory and I will not labour the point. The rider, "provided this would not in the view of the court prejudice the applicant's right to a fair trial", is a given, anyway, but it is...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: Meaning more money for the legal profession.

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I understand the explanation for the term "witness". Would it apply to any applicant also? Would the applicant become a witness when cross-examined?

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I move amendmentNo. 27: In page 9, to delete lines 4 to 10 and substitute the following: "(1) The opinion of a member of An Garda Síochána shall not be considered evidence of any fact or likelihood other than of his or her own opinion in proceedings under section 2.". A member of the Garda Síochána, not below the rank of chief superintendent, can give evidence that he or she considers...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: On the Tánaiste's final point, bail applications are often made within hours of an arrest. Is he seriously stating that a chief superintendent would be able to make himself aware of the requisite knowledge relating to a person in that time? That is a strange procedure. As Deputy Howlin stated, gardaí are already in a position to make their opinions known but this is not regarded as...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: Would it include, for example, the family home? Could somebody use the family home as collateral for bail and, if so, would that leave the State exposed if he or she did not appear for trial? The family home would have to be seized in order to make good the conditions of bail.

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I move amendmentNo. 33: In page 11, line 17, to delete "an authorised person" and substitute "the Probation Service". Question, "That the words proposed to be deleted stand," put and declared carried.

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I move amendmentNo. 34: In page 11, to delete lines 36 to 38 and substitute the following: "(c) if the Probation Service is to be responsible for monitoring the person's movements electronically, the Probation Service.".

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: This section deals with electronic monitoring. I am opposed to this proposal for a number of reasons. In the context of the Criminal Justice Bill 2004, the Tánaiste said electronic tagging would have to prove more efficient and less expensive than traditional probation and welfare measures. However, we have not seen any evidence to prove this. The only information I have been able to...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I presume the Tánaiste will rebut the arguments. With regard to Deputy Jim O'Keeffe's comments, the Home Office in Britain said that rather than diverting people away from prison, more than 80% of electronic tagging orders were used for people who would not have received custodial sentences in the first place. That, therefore, implies an additional cost rather than a saving. There is a...

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: I move amendmentNo. 35: In page 12, line 32, after "person" to insert "in the Probation Service".

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: Yes.

Criminal Justice Bill 2007: Committee Stage (Resumed) (29 Mar 2007)

Aengus Ó Snodaigh: No.