Results 18,181-18,200 of 18,761 for speaker:Michael McDowell

Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2004: Second Stage. (21 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: Article 9 of the Constitution, as much a political as a legal document, declares that fidelity to the nation and loyalty to the State are fundamental political duties of all citizens. It is important on occasion to remind Members who talk about citizenship that loyalty to this State, which has only one Army, is a fundamental political duty of all citizens

Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2004: Second Stage. (21 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: This encapsulates to my mind the essence of the intertwined concepts of citizenship and nationality. To be a citizen of the State is to be as Article 2 states "part of the Irish nation"; to be part of the community which forms that nation; to share the benefits and the vicissitudes that membership of that society brings with it; and to accord respect to the entity that has bestowed...

Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2004: Second Stage. (21 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: Citizenship is the means whereby we become members of a moral, cultural, political, social, economic and legal community based on rights and duties established in law. Citizenship, then, is not just an entitlement to a passport with a particular symbol on its cover, although possession of a passport is undoubtedly an important attribute of entitlement to a particular citizenship. It is a...

Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2004: Second Stage. (21 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: As the Minister who categorically ended granting of citizenship to investors under the "passports for sale" scheme, I am entitled to state that any abuse of citizenship, by which it is conferred on persons with no tangible link to the nation or the State whether of parentage, upbringing or of long-term residence in the State, flies in the face of Article 9.2 and devalues the concept of...

Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2004: Second Stage. (21 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I will repeat myself because Deputy Higgins seems to be a slow learner. No other country has this combination of jus soli and the right to travel in other states.

Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2004: Second Stage. (21 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I am sure the Deputy will.

Twenty-seventh Amendment of the Constitution Bill 2004: Second Stage. (21 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: Do some reading in the meantime. The aspect of our law that gives rise to this abuse is the universal entitlement of any person born in the island of Ireland, which includes its islands and its seas, to be an Irish citizen. The position until December 1999 was that under the Irish Nationality and Citizenship Act 1956, every person born in the island of Ireland was an Irish citizen. This was a...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: There is a simple answer which might not be obvious, however. An "approved medical officer" is defined as somebody practising in the State. If we use the term "consultant psychiatrist", it will allow somebody from abroad to discharge the function. There is no great mystery about it. The term "approved medical officer" has the meaning assigned to it under the 2001 Act. One has to be...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: There are references in subsections (3), (5), (8) and (9) in this section to "offences other than the offences charged". This is to take account of cases where a person charged with one offence may be convicted of a different one. If, for example, a person is charged with murder and found not guilty by reason of insanity and the Court of Criminal Appeal considers the applicant was suffering...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I am told it is copied directly from an English provision.

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I was going to say something slightly different as regards the terms "on oath" and "or otherwise". The phrase "or otherwise" is sufficient to cover affirmation but I agree with the narrow point the Senator is making about the interpretation.

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I cannot accept this amendment. The purpose of paragraph (b) is to provide for circumstances where a person is detained at a designated centre which is also a prison. As prisons do not have clinical directors, the duties and powers noted in section 12 are conferred on the governor as head of the prison. Provision is made for appropriate advice to be provided to the governor in the exercise of...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: The word "disposal" is technically correct but may sound a little offhand. I do not have a thesaurus with me but I am trying to think of some other appropriate word. The word "future" is too vague, but between now and Report Stage I will come up with something less open to misinterpretation. Some unfortunate American person used the word "niggardly" on one occasion, and people who did not...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: The powers that can be exercised include the power of making orders subject to conditions. There is no absolute certainty in this matter. To some extent one is looking into a crystal ball, and one cannot be certain as to what the future will bring. One must however make a fair decision regarding the person. Currently, such decisions are taken by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I have no idea offhand what the figure is as files appear regularly on my desk. However, these are not for the final release of individuals from the Central Mental Hospital but for approval of, for example, someone going on an annual holiday with or without supervision. I cannot give the Senator a rough estimate on the numbers of people who are the subject of a final decision. However, I can...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I agree that Senator Henry's proposed wording is preferable to the existing text. It was initially planned to amend this section but we held back. I propose now to deal with this issue on Report Stage. I hope to table an amendment resulting in as good, if not better, a wording than Senator Henry's for this section.

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: That may all be very well. However, take the example of a psychiatric institution staff member with an individual on a day visit who then escapes. If the staff member sees the person at a later stage and must then get a garda, he or she will lose sight of the individual. It is desirable that we are not inflexible in these situations. I will look at the amendment again but I am not convinced...

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I will examine that amendment for Report Stage.

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I have examined this amendment and intend to table an amendment on Report Stage to incorporate its proposals.

Seanad: Criminal Law (Insanity) Bill 2002: Committee Stage (Resumed). (8 Apr 2004)

Michael McDowell: I am opposing this amendment and the more I hear the argument in favour of it, the more I am opposed to it. Section 3(2) states: An accused person shall be deemed unfit to be tried if he or she is unable by reason of mental disorder to understand the nature or course of the proceedings so as to- (a) plead to the charge, (b) instruct a legal representative, (c) make a proper defence, (d) in...