Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail)

Section 5(4) states: "There shall be no publication for the purposes of the tort of defamation if the defamatory statement concerned is published to the person to whom it relates and to a person other than the person to whom it relates in circumstances where ... it was not intended", etc. What is the position where a defamatory statement is made and where this subsequently, either directly or indirectly, finds its way to television, radio or other media outlets? Will the Minister clarify the position in that regard? I take it that it would constitute secondary publication and would, therefore, be deemed actionable. Matters of this sort can gather momentum as they proceed and even though a letter might not be meant for publication, a member of staff of some media outlet could publish it and claim that he or she had made an honest mistake.