Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)

I was quoting the older section. The new subsection may be phrased less eloquently.

Regarding the law in respect of fair comment and the defence of honest opinion, juries often believed that while someone held an opinion, it was not a fair one. They misunderstood the nature of the law. That juries needed to decide whether something was an honest view rather than a fair one needed to be hammered home to them constantly. The issue of fairness did not arise. "Fair comment" was a bad label for a defence.

If one makes a defamatory comment by reference to facts that are not in contest or can be proven to be true, holding it as an honest opinion is a full defence. It is an important part of freedom of speech. For example, if I said that because Senator Norris did A, B and C, he is unsuitable to be a lecturer in Trinity College Dublin or a Member of the Oireachtas and that he is a total disgrace and a dishonest man, my opinions would be based on facts. If people can refer my opinion to facts in respect of which I am in a position to prove or that are accepted as true, my statement is an expression of opinion.

Opinion does not defame. That I have a clearly identifiable opinion of someone does not damage that person because people are entitled to say that it is only an opinion. It is not a slander or a libeller's charter to distinguish between statements of fact that are false and honest judgments arrived at by people. If we were to trim down this measure, we would make a serious mistake.

The concept of fair comment is often misunderstood by juries and, once, by a non-jury Circuit Court regarding a case in which I was involved. There was an overriding feeling on the part of the juries and the judge to ask whether something was a fair opinion to have of someone, but that is not the current law. One does not need to be fair. If one is honest, one can be intemperate and prejudiced. For example, someone in The Sunday Tribune recently wrote the opinion that I should be arrested. I do not know why, as I did not read the article after reading the headline, but it was published. It was a view of the world, but as long as the person did not write something false about me, he or she is entitled to that opinion.