Results 11,001-11,020 of 18,761 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: Section 42 differentiates between property that is money and property that is not money. Subsection (5) deals specifically with the confiscation co-operation order relating to a sum of money. It provides that such an order will act as a confiscation order requiring the person to pay the relevant sum of money. Subsection (6) is designed to cater for a confiscation co-operation order, with the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I think the Senator is trying to provoke me by using the phrase "constitutionally illiterate". I do not accept that the thought process behind subsection (8) falls into that category. Subsection (8) provides that a statement of evidence by a witness taken in accordance with the letter of request and certified by, or on behalf of, a court or tribunal, is admissible as evidence of any facts...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: This has been carefully examined. The phrase "without further proof" does not mean that it is unassailable. It simply means that there is no requirement to prove further the origins or authenticity of the evidence, apart from what is provided for in the section. With regard to amendments Nos. 32 and 33, it is correct that a judge should be satisfied that the section applies to a request from...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: This amendment requires other member states to serve documents in this country requiring persons to attend hearings in other member states within a reasonable time and not later than 14 days prior to the hearing. While I am sympathetic to the notion that people are given a decent amount of notice, I do not think it would be prudent or correct of us to impose rigid timescales on other member...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I admit it is an odd-looking provision at first sight. The Parliamentary Counsel, however, regards it as important because it permits the courts to refuse to grant measures where they do not have jurisdiction, apart from this section, and where they think it would be inexpedient having regard to that matter to make the order in question. The provision has featured previously in other...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: The Minister can make mistakes.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: The amendment proposes to ensure any order made under the Criminal Justice Act 1994 prior to the commencement of section 84 is not nullified by amendments made under section 84. Under normal rules of construction, such a provision is not necessary as legislation is generally not retrospective and any order made lawfully under the Act prior to the commencement of the section cannot be altered...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I have tabled the amendment on the advice of the Attorney General following recent judgments in two Supreme Court Cases, Browne v. Attorney General & anor and Kennedy v. Attorney General & anor. To date, there have been two domestic legal bases under which regulations have been made to give effect to the European Communities directives and regulations. These are regulations made under section...

Seanad: Missing Persons. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I thank Senator Norris for raising this matter. I assure him that I share his concern, and that of many members of the public, about missing persons. The national missing persons helpline was established in October 2002, shortly after I came into office. Initially, funding of €65,000, to include set up costs, was provided by my Department to establish the helpline, to be operated and...

Seanad: Missing Persons. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I did not suggest it.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I apologise for delaying the House. These are minor technical amendments. Amendments Nos. 1 and 31 correct simple typographical errors in sections 2 and 48. The reference in section 2(3)(c) to section 68(1)(c) should have been to section 67(1)(b) and the reference at section 48(4)(c) regarding the nominated judge informing the witness of his or her right should be to section 49. Amendment No....

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: The intention of Senator Tuffy's amendment is to add to the grounds on which mutual legal assistance would be refused. The amendment proposes that mutual legal assistance would be refused if there were reasonable grounds for believing that such assistance might result in the person being subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, in addition to him or her being subjected to...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: The Senator is referring to anticipated amendments in the Criminal Justice Bill which is before the other House and in that context I do not want to anticipate the debate in that House. I concede, however, that the issues that will arise in that debate have a bearing on this issue but we should jump that stream when we come to it.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am very grateful to Senator Tuffy for moving this amendment and to her colleagues for tabling it. The proposed amendment would broaden the definition of the term "account" where it is used in the legislation and on the face of it there are aspects of it which appear to merit inclusion in the Bill. I ask Senator Tuffy to give me more time to examine the wording she has proposed, in...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: Again, I am grateful to Senator Tuffy for tabling these amendments. They are to permit the applications in respect of these orders to be heard otherwise than in public. There is precedent for this in other areas. Perhaps the Senator will let me do the same as I proposed earlier, that is, consult with the Parliamentary Counsel on the matter. If the Parliamentary Counsel is satisfied with the...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: Amendments Nos. 13 and 18 would have the effect of deleting the provision that an account information or account monitoring order made with regard to criminal investigations in the State or in a member state of the European Union would have effect as if they were orders of the District Court. The effect of the acceptance of amendment No. 26 would be to delete the reference to an order made...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: The amendment seeks to permit account information or account monitoring orders to be made relating to financial institutions in the European Union outside Ireland and to financial institutions in Ireland which are not in the district of the District Court to which the judge is assigned. Under section 12(2), applications for account information and account monitoring orders may relate to...

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I am grateful to the Senator for tabling this amendment. I fully agree with her and the wording in the amendment is correct. I accept the amendment.

Seanad: Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Bill 2005: Committee Stage. (30 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I will seek further advice from the Attorney General on that point. The purpose of the provision is to give effect to Articles 18.6 and 18.7 of the convention of 2000 and the provision is included to give Ireland the option of making a notification to the European Union at the time of ratification that we are unable to provide for immediate interception and transmission of telecommunications...

Written Answers — Garda Deployment: Garda Deployment (29 Mar 2006)

Michael McDowell: I have been informed by the Garda authorities responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that the personnel strength of Castleisland Garda station as at 27 March 2006 was nine, all ranks. I have been further informed that the unit detailed for work on St. Patrick's night 2006 consisted of one sergeant and one garda. To augment the unit a third member was...