Eugene Regan (Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 3:

In page 10, between lines 10 and 11, to insert the following:

"(3) A person shall not be convicted of an offence under this Act based on the opinion given under this section in the absence of corroborating evidence, which shall not include evidence given to a Court based on section 9 of this Act.".

While it is not provided in this section that one is giving evidence or otherwise of a specific offence, the amendment concerns inferences, etc. Notwithstanding the section's purpose, the amendment is to be recommended as an additional safeguard. When an opinion is formed by a chief superintendent or whichever member of the Garda is to provide it, the definition of "criminal organisation" to be used is that of a number of people who have previous convictions and are established as being members of a gang, which is itself an offence. One can be convicted for being a member of or involved with the gang, for directing its actions or otherwise. Evidence can emerge from the opinion that is relevant to securing a conviction. The amendment is that there would be corroborating evidence before a court before any such offence could be deemed to be committed under the Bill. It is a necessary and useful safeguard. If accepted, there would be sufficient safeguards regarding the provision of essential evidence that would be normally considered admissible in court before an offence could be deemed to have been committed, and there would be corroborative evidence to support a conviction.