Results 13,081-13,100 of 18,736 for speaker:Michael McDowell
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I do not think the provision is unduly wide. It believe it is a serious offence to take a child someplace and deprive him or her of his or her liberty for the purpose of observing sexual activity.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: If depriving a child of his or her liberty and then obliging him or her to observe sexual activity is not grooming, I do not know what is.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: It does not. I do not accept that proposition at all.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I have.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: We have a Constitution, a law and a set of judges who are reasonable people. I do not believe that babysitting amounts to the detention of children. I do not believe anybody would interpret the act of babysitting in such a way.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I appreciate that.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I take the point that Deputy Howlin is making. The Deputy and I, along with many others, worked hard over many months at the committee chaired by Deputy Peter Power to develop an agenda for reforming the child protection law. In that context, we appreciated that the law would have to be restated. It is hard to pull it all together because it is spread over a pile of difficult and obscure...
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: There is not really a party political division on this issue.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: The Deputy and I had one view and Deputy O'Keeffe had another.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: It is not an exact science. It is a case of talking about 365 days. I know that a year is a long time in the life of a child but the Deputy is talking about a fairly arbitrary distinction, one way or the other. All I am doing in this legislation is trying to give this House an occasion on which to unite to bring about small but significant improvements in our law and to deal with the...
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I refer to the case of a person who communicates with a child on a number of occasions and then travels to meet that child with the purpose of inviting, inducing or coercing that child to participate in or observe activities of a sexual or indecent nature. In my opinion, that is grooming the child and is sexual exploitation of that child.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I do not accept that proposition.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I do not accept the proposition that any reasonable court could construe the sectionââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Bill 2007: Committee and Remaining Stages (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I do not believe that somebody who goes to visit a child, having telephoned that child twice in the child's life before, and who kisses his girlfriend in front of the child, is committing an offence under this section.
- Written Answers — Regulatory Reform: Regulatory Reform (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I refer the Deputy to my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 223 of 13th February 2007. The position remains that my Department is examining the recommendations contained in the Report of the Law Reform Commission on Vulnerable Adults and the Law, in consultation with other Departments, the Attorney General, the Courts Service, and other interests with a view to their implementation as soon...
- Written Answers — Services for People with Disabilities: Services for People with Disabilities (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: Section 28 (1)(a) of the Disability Act 2005 provides that each public body is required to ensure, as far as practicable, that information which is orally provided to the public is provided in an accessible format, where so requested by persons with hearing impairments. In July of last year I launched a Code of Practice on Accessibility of Public Services and Information provided by Public...
- Written Answers — Citizenship Applications: Citizenship Applications (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: An application for a certificate of naturalisation from the person referred to in the Deputy's question was received in the Citizenship Section of my Department in December 2003. Officials in the Citizenship Section of my Department inform me that processing of this application has commenced and that the case file will be presented to me for my decision in the near future. The person in...
- Written Answers — Road Traffic Offences: Road Traffic Offences (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: In view of the nature of the questions and in order to supply the details requested by the Deputy I am informed by the Garda authorities that it is necessary to make enquiries at each Garda Division. I will be in contact with the Deputy when the information is to hand.
- Written Answers — : (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: Legislation providing for the issue of fixed charge notices requires that motorists detected for committing offences be issued with a fixed charge notice. The legislation also provides that the paying of the fixed charge is a discretionary option which rests with the recipient of the fixed charge notice. Prosecutions for such offences can only be initiated where the recipient of the notice...
- Written Answers — Asylum Applications: Asylum Applications (6 Mar 2007)
Michael McDowell: I refer the Deputy to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 229 of Tuesday, 21st November, 2006, 613 of Thursday, 6th July, 2006, 582 & 599 of Tuesday, 4th July, 2006, 200 of Thursday, 29th June, 2006, 193 of Thursday, 18th May, 2006, and 325 of Tuesday, 9th May, 2006, and the written replies to those Questions. The person concerned arrived in the State on 5 November, 2003 and was given permission to...