Terry Leyden (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I support the concept behind Senator van Turnhout's amendment. In fairness, I believe the Minister would concur with the tone and tenor of what the Senator has said and that he will explain that. However, there are also extreme situations and we cannot anticipate what will happen in the future or the situation then. Therefore, we must be careful not to tie the hands of the Judiciary in this regard. We must be conscious of the fact that serious crimes can be committed by juveniles and we cannot turn a blind eye to what might happen in the future. I will respect the Minister's view on this issue. If he outlines proposals along the lines of what Senator van Turnhout has said, that will be satisfactory.