Alex White (Labour)

I thank the Senator for that. Aspects of the 1998 Act are required to be renewed each year in the Oireachtas. I was less than impressed by the rigour of the scrutiny we were able to give that renewal because of the lack of information in that respect. While a report was laid before the Houses, in terms of knowing the background to the necessity to continue to use that legislation, we were not put in a position where we could have a satisfactory examination of those matters. In fairness to Senator Boyle, we need to improve greatly the level, extent and nature of our scrutiny of such legislation before we can rely on that as a way of giving comfort to those of us who think this proposal is excessive. It is not, I repeat, that we believe there is not a need for the Minister to take seriously any concerns there are about interference with juries but rather that we should respond not in an excessive but in a proportionate manner to those kinds of concerns.

On that basis, the amendment we advanced would meet that test of proportionality. It is not excessive. It allows for trials to take place in the Special Criminal Court in respect of these kinds of offences. It puts a certain onus on the Director of Public Prosecutions to express an opinion but one that is based on reasonable and objective grounds. The norm would not be that all these trials on offences would go to the Special Criminal Court unless they were taken out by the Director of Public Prosecutions but rather that the Director Public Prosecutions would have to make the case to put them in there in the first place.