Sheila Terry (Fine Gael)

I will now always assume the person who answers the door is the voter because I have been caught out too many times when I have been wrong about his or her age. It is very easy to make a mistake. That is the point. It is so easy to make a mistake. Therefore, the onus must be on the adult to ensure he or she discovers the age. If there is any doubt, the adult does not get involved.

If we water that down, we are definitely making it difficult for children and putting them at risk. The zone of absolute protection must be provided. As the Minister said, we do not want our young children to be cross-examined in court. We do not want to put them through that. We know that parents will not put their children through that and there will be fewer cases. We see this with adult women who will not go through with a court case or even report a rape because of what they must put themselves through in court proceedings. Therefore, I certainly could not support Senator Norris's amendment. Perhaps when he thinks again about it, he might reasonably accept that we must set high standards and that it is up to adults to ensure they know the age and, if there is any doubt, they do not get involved.