Joanna Tuffy (Labour)

I echo the comments of Senators Brian Hayes and O'Toole. Where is the Bill today to address the fact that we have no absolute protection for children from sexual predators? That is the consequence of the Supreme Court judgment handed down last week which ruled that a section of an Act dealing with this issue was unconstitutional. Last week, I and other Senators, asked for urgent legislation, saying that it should take priority over everything else. We should have a Bill before us today, not next week or whenever the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform suggests.

I could not believe my ears when listening to the interview by Pat Kenny with the Minister on this issue. The Minister said there was no need to rush, there was no gaping hole in the legislation and that the legislation on sexual offences would deal with the issue, which is untrue. I have good legal advice to that effect. Members of Fine Gael described the Minister's comments as flippant. Those flippant comments about 15 year old girls and 23 year old men missed the point.

According to a report in the Sunday Independent the Government did not see this coming down the line. That is ridiculous. The State was defending this case in the Supreme Court. How could it not have known? This is a serious issue. Children are now at risk because of this judgment and the failure of the Government to act urgently on it.

The Minister should have anticipated this judgment. Ministers are normally very good at anticipating outcomes and having statements prepared on less serious matters such as the Eurovision song contest. A week later there is no Bill on this matter before the Oireachtas. A Bill should be placed before the Houses before the end of this week, if we care about our children.