Feargal Quinn (Independent)

I welcome the Minister. I thank him for educating me today. It is the first time I have heard the report as regards the number of times that each section has been used, and this is of great interest. Perhaps all legislation should have to come before both Houses of the Oireachtas every so often. I am not saying every year, but perhaps it could be every five or ten years to avoid legislation running out of date.

The reference everyone has made today to the Saville report yesterday reminded me of 1972, of which I have a full memory. In that year, some months after that event I got a phone call to tell me that my brother-in-law had just been short dead in Northern Ireland. I was obliged to tell my sister that the father of her seven children had just been shot dead. It is a real reminder of the words used by the Minister when he referred to hate filled ideology and the need to fight it. From a distance, it is comparatively easy to count figures. However, I refer to those of us who have experience of what can happen in Northern Ireland when one is involved oneself and when one knows others involved. As the Minister lives so close to the Border, he has an understanding of the closeness of events which have spilled across the Border so many times.

I understand some believe the non-emergency use of this legislation is in violation of Ireland's requirements under the European Convention on Human Rights and other charters. Under the Good Friday Agreement, there was a move towards normalisation of security measures on both sides of the Border. However, recent events to which the Minister referred such as the recent discovery by the Garda of an improvised bomb that was about to be moved across the Border into Northern Ireland by a Real IRA faction demonstrate that the position in the North remains highly volatile. Moreover, PSNI officers believe this event proves that the faction is planning attacks on targets in Northern Ireland in the near future. As the Minister stated, an attack on the PSNI could just as easily be an attack on the Garda here and constitutes an attack on peace.

It is recognised that the unemployment rate among young males in Northern Ireland almost acts as a seedbed for recruitment for some of these illegal organisations. This serves as a reminder that we should ensure the new British Government recognises there is a different need in the North than elsewhere in the United Kingdom to support whatever efforts are made in respect of employment creation.

The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights permits a state to implement measures such as this legislation but only "in times of public emergency which threaten the life of the nation [and only] ... to the extent strictly required by the exigencies of the situation". I am unsure whether the legislation conforms with the charter and the Minister might expand on whether this is the case.

Like all Members, I fully support the legislation. The danger is that as one moves further away from the Border and the last horrific event - I am not simply thinking of the bombing in Omagh but also the other events to which Senator Regan referred in Northern Ireland within the past year - one loses sight of how close we are to it and how dangerous is the situation. Therefore, legislation such as this is needed.