asked the Minister for Finance whether a conviction under the Offences Against the State Act is a prohibition against employment, established, unestablished or part-time in the Civil Service.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Offences Against the State Act.
4.
Convictions other than those referred to in section 34 of the Offences Against the State Act, 1939, do not automatically constitute a prohibition against employment in the Civil Service.
Would the Minister give an assurance that in the case of persons convicted of offences for which they are charged in the course of a trade dispute, such convictions will not be regarded as a bar to State employment in future?
Offences committed in the course of trade disputes have nothing whatever to do with the Offences Against the State Act.
Does the Offences Against the State Act not provide that a person charged under a certain section before a special court will be deprived of civil rights for five years and debarred from employment in either the Civil Service or local authorities?
Section 34 provides for disqualification and forfeitures in the event of conviction of scheduled offences by a special criminal court.
A special court.
A special criminal court.
Will the Minister give an assurance that persons charged under section 28 will not, if convicted, have such conviction used as a barrier against State employment in future?
Conviction and consequences thereof naturally will depend on the circumstances of each case. I cannot give any assurance of the nature the Deputy requires.
In the light of the circumstances not unknown to the Minister at present, will he give an assurance that the matter will be sympathetically considered?
I am dealing with forfeitures generally under the Offences Against the State Act. I cannot go beyond that.
There will be no victimisation.
We hope.