James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail)
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268. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality his plans to revise harassment laws here taking into consideration the impact of cyberbullying on the mental health of a person; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [46770/18]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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I can assure the Deputy that work is underway to progress legislation to reform the law in the area of harassment, with a particular focus on harmful communications online in light of growing concerns in relation to the impact of such behaviours. The Law Reform Commission published a comprehensive report on Harmful Communications and Digital Safety in September 2016. This report contained a number of recommendations to further strengthen the criminal justice and regulatory response to harm perpetrated online.

In December 2016, the Government approved the preparation of the general scheme of a Bill to address the criminal law elements of the Commission's report. Subsequently, as the Deputy will be aware, Deputy Brendan Howlin published a Private Member’s Bill entitled the Harassment, Harmful Communications and Related Offences Bill 2017 which completed second stage in the Dáil in January 2018 and was not opposed by Government. The main provisions of the Bill as published include extending the existing offence of sending threatening or indecent messages to apply to all threatening, false, indecent and obscene messages using any form of online or traditional method of communications. The Bill creates new offences to deal with the distribution of intimate images without consent. The Bill also proposes extending the existing offence of harassment as contained in section 10 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997 to include all forms of communication, including through online or digital communications, and including communication about a person, which is most relevant to this question.

Cabinet agreed in May this year to cease work on the Government Bill and to support Deputy Howlin's Bill to ensure that legislation can be enacted as swiftly as possible. Officials in my Department have met with Labour Party officials with the intention of identifying and bringing forward any necessary Government amendments to ensure the Bill can be as effective as possible. I am currently awaiting legal advice from the Office of the Attorney General in relation to these proposed amendments and I am committed to enacting this legislation at the earliest possible opportunity.