Eugene Regan (Fine Gael)

The amendment proposed raises some very important questions. If one relies on this provision to mitigate the level of damages, time should run from the date of the complaint and I feel this level of specificity is necessary. This point is made in the amendment, though whether it should be 14 days is open to debate. It should be clear that time is of the essence when an apology is to be made. The date given may be the day before the action commenced when the aggrieved party has made all efforts to consider the matter. The form of the apology comes into question, which comes back to the point I raised on the previous section. An offer of apology should be reasonable in the sense that it should be as prominent as the insult was in the first instance.

Revision is required in this area, whether using the specific wording proposed by Senator White, because provision must be made for time being of the essence and running from the date of the complaint. The issue of the prominence of the apology must also be dealt with. Without these ingredients this provision should not be open to the publisher.