Results 10,901-10,920 of 12,487 for speaker:John O'Donoghue
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: Under the Constitution, it is the case that there is a separation of powers. It is the case that the courts interpret the Constitution and it is the case that the courts decide whether a prisoner should be released, in accordance with the same Constitution.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: It is the function of this House and has been the function of this House over many years to seek to correct lacunae in the law where they exist. It was not possible and it could not be possible for any Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform or any Attorney General to pre-empt what would be the decision of the Supreme Court.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: It is and was the duty of the Attorney General and it is and was the duty of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to introduce legislationââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: ââfollowing the Supreme Court judgment with a view to correcting the position in the interests of society. In so far as that could be done, the legislation before the House today does precisely that.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I have heard arguments in the House this morning to the effect that the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform should resign, that he should have acted before the Supreme Court decision and that the Attorney General should have known.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: Nobody has had the courage to say the honest to God truth, which is that it did not really matter in the final analysis if they knew it since 1990 because the Supreme Court had not made that decision. What counted was the Supreme Court decision that was made recently and what counted was the corrective action that was taken subsequently.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I do not believe that the paucity of the intellectual argument or the intellectual processââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: ââhas been illustrated in a more stark fashionââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: ââthan the sight last nightââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: ââof six or seven Independent Deputies holed up in some Dublin hotelââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: ââseeking to gain their tuppence ha'penny worth of publicity about a grave situation and a grave matter facing this House.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: If the truth be told, these political gadflies would not get across the interpretation section of the legislation itself, let alone understand what section 1(1) or section 1(2) meant.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: Is anybody seriously suggesting to this House this afternoon that the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, Deputy McDowell, one of the leading criminal lawyers in the countryââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: ââwould understand the law of this country less well than the political gadflies who were on television last night?
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: Is it the case that anybody could credibly make the argument to this House or any place elseââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: ââthat there is even one single member of the Opposition Front Bench in any party who could explain to him or tell him what the law was?
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: I suggest that the people are not going to be fooled by that argumentââ
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: ââwhatever about any other argument that the Opposition is going to bring forward.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: It was clear from Deputy Howlin's speech this morning not only that he did not understand the 1935 Act, but also that he did not understand the legislation introduced by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform in the House today.
- Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Bill 2006: Second Stage. (2 Jun 2006)
John O'Donoghue: That is the truth, stark and all as it might seem.