Diarmuid Wilson (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House. I will be brief. I thank Senator Marie-Louise O'Donnell for bringing forward the Bill. I was in my office working on something else and listened very carefully to what she and the Fine Gael spokesperson said about the Bill. While I accept that my party is not in a position to support it, I am conscious of the fact that there is a parole Bill in the Lower House which has been awaiting Committee Stage since 2014. There is a lot of merit is what is contained in this Bill.

As we are all aware, if somebody is charged with causing a death, the charge is either manslaughter or murder. We should first consider the definition of manslaughter and then consider a harder definition of murder.

There has been some reference to relatives of the victims of murder, who are in the Gallery. I would like to join colleagues in welcoming them to the House. While we are debating whether somebody should serve a minimum sentence of seven years or between 25 and 40 years, the victim of murder is serving a sentence of eternity, something we should not forget. I understand that the majority of people are not in favour of the Bill, but there is very little disagreement other than on the minimum sentencing proposal which is the main thrust of the Bill.

Perhaps we could be given an opportunity to examine the matter and possibly amend the Bill, incorporating into it, with Senator Marie-Louise O'Donnell's permission, the definition of manslaughter. There is a significant difference between the sentence for manslaughter and that for murder. If we can reclassify manslaughter and harden the definition of murder, there would be a better case to be made for minimum sentences suggested in the Bill.