Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the House for taking these two motions. The House will be aware that the Offences against the State (Amendment) Act 1998 was enacted in the wake of the barbaric murder by the Real IRA of 29 innocent people at Omagh in August 1998, 20 years ago. That atrocity demanded this legislative response from the State as a necessary and wholly proportionate measure to defend the desire of the vast majority on this island to live in peace.

Section 18 of the 1998 Act provides that sections 2 to 4, inclusive, 6 to 12, inclusive, 14 and 17 must be renewed by the Oireachtas at least annually if they are to remain in force. I will not take up too much of the limited time available to me by going through in detail each of the relevant sections of the Act. The report I have provided to the House gives details of the various sections and the offences and other arrangements provided for.

I would bring to the attention of Senators that one element of section 9, that is subsection (1)(b), is the subject of litigation. This subsection provides for an offence of withholding information which might be of material assistance in securing the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of another person for a serious offence. It was the subject of challenge in the context of an individual case and was declared invalid by the High Court in February. That declaration is being appealed.The remainder of section 9 is not in question. In the event that the Supreme Court upholds the decision of the High Court that subsection would, of course, be permanently inoperative. The report I laid before the House sets out in more detail than in previous years an assessment of the security situation and while I do not intend to rehearse that, I wish to highlight some aspects.

The Garda assessment is that there is a real and persistent threat from republican paramilitary groups on this island, the so-called dissidents. These groups have spent the past 20 years trying to destroy the Good Friday Agreement. They are resolute in their opposition to democracy and peace and they are resolute in their commitment to brutality and criminality. I am equally resolute that these terrorists will not succeed. Along with the vast majority of the people of this island, I am firmly resolved in favour of a future founded in peace and reconciliation and I am sure Senators share my resolution.

I would reference also the threat posed by jihadist-type terrorism. The raw brutality of the attacks we have seen in many countries, including our nearest European neighbours, targeting innocent people going about their daily lives is a stark reminder of the vulnerability of all open democracies to this threat. The security authorities here are alive to the potential threat we face and continue to work closely with their international counterparts in identifying and responding to that threat.

I pay a particular tribute to the women and men of An Garda Síochána who continue to work tirelessly to preserve life and to counter all forms of terrorism. I pay a tribute also to the men and women of the police and security services in Northern Ireland, with whom the Garda work closely every day to enhance the safety of all communities right across the island.

I now turn to section 8 of the Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act 2009. This Act was a response to difficulties facing the justice system at a time when certain organised criminal gangs were behaving as though they were beyond the law. Section 8 provides that four particularly serious organised crime offences should be tried in the Special Criminal Court, subject to the power of the Director of Public Prosecutions to direct that they would be tried in the ordinary courts. I will not delay Senators with repeating the detail of what is set out in the report on this section that I have laid before the House in accordance with section 8. That report covers the period from 1 June 2017 to 31 May 2018 and was laid before the House on 11 June 2018. It includes information provided by the Garda Commissioner on the use over the past 12 months of the provisions in question and details of the offences in question. The report notes that no cases came for trial before the Special Criminal Court. However, I do not consider that this invalidates the need for the section to remain in operation. What I will say is that no one in this House, or indeed outside of it, could be under any illusion as to the threat that society and the criminal justice system face from organised crime gangs who will stop at nothing in pursuit of their criminal activities. The Garda authorities continue to work intensively to bear down on these criminal gangs and to disrupt their activities. The Garda deserves praise for the considerable successes it has had against these gangs and with the Government’s support that work will continue.

Before concluding I wish to refer briefly to the Special Criminal Court. While it is my view that jury trial should be preserved to the greatest possible degree, we cannot be blind to the real threat to the criminal process from groups of terrorists or criminals who have absolutely no regard for the law. The Special Criminal Court was established to respond to the threat to the State and its people from republican terrorism over the decades. It continues to deal with the subversive threat from paramilitary groups and some serious organised crime cases. I reject assertions made elsewhere that the court has operated with bias. Over the years its judges have presided without fear or favour over the prosecution of some of the most dangerous and ruthless terrorists and criminals in this State. The court has proved its value over the years and it continues to do so.

As set out in the two reports, it is the clear view of An Garda Síochána that the provisions in the 1998 Act and the 2009 Act continue to be the most important in ongoing efforts in the fight against terrorism and serious organised crime. On the basis of the information set out in the report and on the advice of the Garda authorities I now propose that the Seanad should approve the continued operation of the relevant provisions of the 1998 Act and the 2009 Act for a further 12 months due to commence on 30 June 2018.