Brian Hayes (Fine Gael)

The problem with all these matters is that they may ultimately come to the High Court or Supreme Court for decision. We only have one chance to get this right. We are all aware of some well celebrated court cases where individuals have driven a coach and four through existing legislation. It may well be the case that the format proposed in these amendments does not meet the desired end and I ask the Minister of State to consider the matter further between now and Report Stage tomorrow morning. There is a lacuna here. It is absolutely legitimate and correct that protection should be afforded to people who co-operate, particularly if that information is given in private, and it is the best way to prevent a cross-examination process that serves to increase the costs of barristers and so on. However, it should not follow automatically that where such an individual provided information, he or she should be given immunity in future. Section 6 provides for that. If the Minister of State examines this issue with his officials between now and tomorrow, that will be fine. I fully accept the amendment may not achieve the end we seek but we are flagging this as a problem that could well emerge in the future if we do not get the legislation right. I am not sure whether this issue was raised in the other House but it has been brought to our attention and it needs to be re-examined. We must ensure the immunity given to people is fair and transparent. They should not be granted immunity going forward, as this would allow people who are guilty of wrongdoing to get away with it because they co-operated in the first instance.