Vol. 402 No. 3
11 Mr. McCartan asked the Taoiseach if he will outline the reports of the Law Reform Commission which have yet to be acted on by the Government; whether the Government accept the recommendations of the outstanding reports; if his attention has been drawn to the concern recently expressed by the chairman of the Law Reform Commission on delays in implementing their reports; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
12 Mr. Shatter asked the Taoiseach the reports of the Law Reform Commission, published during the last five years, in respect of which no legislation has to date been enacted to implement the reforms recommended; when is it expected such legislation will be enacted; and whether the Government intends to abolish the commission.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 and 12 together.
The information sought by the Deputies is contained in a statement which I propose to circulate in the Official Report.
There are four Bills at present before the Oireachtas which will implement commission reports. These are the Criminal Law (Rape) Amendment Bill, 1988, the Statute of Limitations (Amendment) Bill, 1990, the Criminal Damage Bill, 1990, and the Child Abduction and Enforcement of Custody Orders Bill, 1990. Work is at an advanced stage in regard to other reports.
The commission have made a very large number of recommendations; for example, in the last three years they have published 12 reports and three consultation papers, of a very detailed kind. Each of these require careful examination in order to enable a decision to be taken.
Deputies will, of course, appreciate that the introduction of legislation in this connection is a matter for the Government, and, consequently, it is somewhat misleading to speak of "delays in implementing" recommendations of the commission.
Further, the Government have a large and urgent legislative programme, much of which is in areas not covered by commission reports: and they give the reports the appropriate priority taking account of these other legislative demands and limited resources. Indeed, in their latest annual report the commission pointed out that they do not claim to have a monopoly of wisdom and do not expect all their recommendations to be implemented as a matter of course.
The Government have no plans to abolish the Law Reform Commission.
The following is the statement:
Reports which have yet to be acted upon — (a) Report on Defective Premises; (b) Report on Nullity of Marriage; (c) Report on Offences Under the Dublin Police Acts and Related Offences; (d) Report on Minors' Contracts; (e) Report on the Hague Convention on the Taking of Evidence Abroad in Civil or Commercial Matters; (f) Report on the Liability in Tort of Minors and the Liability of Parents for Damage Caused by Minors; (g) Report on the Liability in Tort of Mentally Disabled Persons; (h) Report on Private International Law Aspects of Capacity to Marry and Choice of Law in Proceedings for Nullity of Marriage; (i) Report on Jurisdiction in Proceedings for Nullity of Marriage, Recognition of Foreign Nullity Decrees, and the Hague Convention on the Celebration and Recognition of the Validity of Marriages; (j) Report on the Service of Documents Abroad re Civil Proceedings — the Hague Convention; (k) Report on the Rule Against Hearsay in Civil Cases; (l) Report on Debt Collection: (1) The Law Relating to Sheriffs; (m) Report on Debt Collection: (2) Retention of Title; (n) Report on the Recognition of Foreign Adoption Decrees; (o) Report on Land Law and Conveyancing Law: (1) General Proposals; (p) Report on Land Law and Conveyancing Law: (2) Enduring Powers of Attorney; (q) Report on Child Sexual Abuse; (r) Report on Sexual Offences Against the Mentally Handicapped.
Deputies De Rossa and Shatter rose.
I am calling Deputy Shatter who tabled Question No. 12.
May I ask the Taoiseach what stage Government deliberations are at with regard to implementing the report on the recognition of foreign adoption decrees?
I will have to let the Deputy know what the progress is in regard to that matter.
Is the Taoiseach aware that a large number of couples in this State wish to adopt but cannot do so because of the small number of children available for adoption? Is he aware that, as a result, many are resorting to adopting outside Ireland and that in the region of 50 couples adopted children in Romania during the course of the past ten months? Is the Taoiseach aware that none of the adoptions outside Ireland are valid or recognised in Ireland and that there is an urgent need to enact legislation to tackle this problem?
I am aware of the problem but I am not aware of the details and I accept the Deputy's outline of the matter. I will let him know immediately what progress has been made to date.
In the event that we are all still here tomorrow, may I ask the Taoiseach, if his Government are still in place, to give priority to enacting legislation to deal with the whole area of foreign adoption orders?
Of course, and I am sure the Deputy will give equal priority to making sure the Government are in place.
Deputy Proinsias De Rossa is offering.
To date, neither the Minister for Justice nor the Minister for Health has shown any interest in tackling this problem.
Deputy Proinsias De Rossa has been called.
I am sure the Taoiseach is aware that the question of whether we are here tomorrow depends on him and Deputy O'Malley. Will the Taoiseach indicate how priorities in relation to the commission's reports are decided, if any priorities are established in relation to the most recent 12 reports to which the Taoiseach referred and if he will outline what those priorities are? Finally, will he consider the possibility of establishing a committee of the House, or of the Oireachtas, to look at these reports and make recommendations on the priorities which should be addressed?
As the Deputy knows, in the case of all Government legislative business it is a question of resources and priorities. Departments take these reports as they come and try to get on with them. Some of them get through the process quicker than others. We afford them all equal attention in that regard and we do not actually prioritise any particular one.
Is the Taoiseach aware that in other European countries where they have law reform commissions reports and recommendations are implemented a good deal speedier than they are here? Will the Taoiseach acknowledge that there is a need to have a special Minister with responsibility for law reform so as to ensure that the impetus to keep our laws up-to-date is maintained and that the work of the commission is relevant?
I had that responsibility once when I was what was called a Parliamentary Secretary. I had special responsibility for law reform. I will consider the suggestion in view of how successful I was at that time.
The Taoiseach would be quite successful even from this side of the House in implementing law reform.
The Taoiseach did not address the second part of my question, the suggestion of establishing an Oireachtas committee, which would obviously include Government representatives, to examine the reports and make recommendations to the Government on the priorities which need to be addressed.
That seems to be worthy of a separate question.
I will think about that.
In the eleventh report the Law Reform Commission suggested that it would be helpful to them if Government Ministers, when introducing legislation in the House, could let them and the public know why some of their recommendations were not accepted. This would be very helpful, particularly in regard to the Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Bill which is going through the House at present.
That is a very good idea.
