Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Go raibh maith agat, a Chathaoirligh, agus an Ceannaire Gníomhach. Cuirim fáilte léi. Go n-éirí léi mar Ceannaire Gníomhach an tSeanaid.

I want to raise an issue today that is quite delicate. It is something that I am conflicted on as a criminal barrister and somebody who has practised in an area of law that requires principles of justice to be applied delicately. I believe wholeheartedly in the importance of a fair trial, the right to represent yourself and all of the other rights that are contingent on that. There is an issue that has been about for a number of years and which has perhaps come to the fore this week - I do not want to talk about any particular case - and that is the right of persons to represent themselves in criminal trials and to face their accuser. It is tremendously important to allow people to face their accusers. It is part of our system. It is one of the fair trial principles that we have. You must know the details of who is accusing you, what they are saying and all the rest, in order to be able to mount a defence. There also must be a coterie of cases where we can legitimately restrict the right of a particular person to face a particular accuser. It is probably reasonable in certain types of cases. The ones, of course, that spring to mind are cases such as rape and sexual assault.In those types of case it must be reasonable to say a person may not directly cross-examine the person who has accused him or her of a very serious and personal offence. It is, as I say, delicate. It requires very careful consideration.

Very often we put down these principles and they become expanded after they become law. An example of that is section 16 of the Criminal Justice Act, which allows statements to be put to people. It was originally envisaged as being part of a very narrow set of offences and it has expanded over time through practice. Thus, it is something that requires very careful consideration. However, it is also right to say that where a person makes a complaint of that type of offence it is reasonable to say to the accused person that of course he or she can represent themselves and conduct the trial, however unwise that might be, but he or she is not entitled to directly cross-examine that person. He or she can only do so through counsel. He or she can only do so through a lawyer. It is important we consider a legislative solution to that. We have a coterie of people at the Bar of Ireland, and I am one of them, who are incredibly professional, qualified and experienced in this area and know what the parameters of that process are. An individual who represents himself or herself does not. That should not stop them from doing it, however unwise that might be, as I said, but it should allow us to step in and say there is a small and very carefully-defined category of offences where it is not acceptable to do that and where the law is going to prohibit someone from doing that. It is reasonable for us to explore in a debate and in a legislative solution what we can do to protect complainants who come forward in certain types of cases.