Derek McDowell (Labour)

The phrase "of unsound mind" is a term used quite frequently in statute law. I think the Senator appreciates that it is used in 173 Acts of the Oireachtas between 1923 and 2000.

Would the Senator's preferred phrase "mental disorder" refer to forgetfulness and loss of short-term memory? I do not know and I do not want to discuss it now. Can the Senator imagine a firearms dealer who suffers from loss of short-term memory to the extent that he or she could no longer be relied on to make records of dealings? As a person gets older, this is something which could significantly impair his or her suitability to be a firearms dealer. I do not say that uncharitably but situations could arise where gardaí could no longer rely on a person to tell them who had come into the shop on a given day, how many shotgun cartridges they supplied or if they were sure about the accuracy of their records.

The term was not just dusted off and taken from a Victorian Statute Book but is frequently used, whatever it means. It is a broad term but it is flexible and, in the last analysis, all the decisions will be subject to judicial interpretation. If people do not agree with it they have the right of appeal to a judge, who will decide what it means in a particular case.

The Senator mentioned the Criminal Law (Insanity) Act 2006. I was not present in this House for the debate but the Minister of State, Deputy Brian Lenihan, became aware of the fact that, having agreed to Deputy Ó Snodaigh's amendment on the substantive provision, a minor reference remained undeleted in section 13.