Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Senators for the amendments. As stated by Senator van Turnhout, the effect of these amendments would be to substitute the term "child sexual abuse material" for "child pornography" throughout this Bill and the other Acts in which it appears. The EU directive on child sexual exploitation and pornography uses the term that is used in this Bill. However, I appreciate Senator van Turnhout's concerns and support her aim of ensuring that no one is in any doubt about what is meant when we speak of child sexual abuse material. It is, as stated by the Senator, crime scene evidence of the most depraved and disgusting acts in relation to children. A huge concern for criminal justice investigations across Europe and the world is the increasing evidence of abuse of children, most of whom, as stated by Senator Norris, are very young children.

While I am not entirely convinced that the term "child pornography" fails to convey the true nature of this heinous material, I am, as I have stated previously, open to considering the change proposed by the Senator in a future review of child pornography legislation. For technical reasons, and owing to the scale of the review involved, which I think the Senator will appreciate, I am unable to accept the amendments today. The Minister of State outlined on Committee Stage the technical reasons to which I referred, and I would like to reiterate them for the benefit of the House. The term "child pornography" appears in the Statute Book outside of the 1998 Act. Any general amendment to that term throughout the Statute Book should be carefully made. I am advised that a general amending provision such as that proposed by Senator van Turnhout in amendment No. 27 would not suffice. Rather, apparently, each provision in the Statue Book containing the term that it is proposed to amend should be individually identified. While it is not unusual to substitute one form of words with another, this is done through individual identification in each instance. This is an important safeguard, particularly, of course, when it comes to criminal justice legislation.

The amendments proposed also raise technical issues, including, for example, the impact on the Short Title of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998. I am advised that it is not appropriate to amend the Short Title to an existing Act by way of an amendment in subsequent legislation. The Senator will appreciate that such amendment would need to be provided for by way of a different Bill. The Act should be substituted and repealed. I hope the Senator understands why I am unable to do that at this point. However, I take the points made by the Senator and they will be taken into account in the context of any review of that legislation.