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Select Committee on Legislation and Security debate -
Tuesday, 26 Nov 1996

SECTION 15.

Amendment No. 9a is consequential on amendment No. 8 and both may discussed together by agreement.

I move amendment No. 8:

In page 9, lines 26 to 38, to delete subsection (4) and substitute the following:

"(4) Any rule of law or enactment whereby an offence is, or is regarded as, a felony shall be construed as relating to an offence.

(5) Without prejudice to any express amendment or repeal made by this Act—

(a) nothing in this Act shall affect the operation of any reference to an offence in the enactments specially relating to that offence by reason only of the reference being in terms no longer applicable after the commencement of this Act;

(b) any enactment referring to felonious stealing or to felonious taking shall be read as referring merely to stealing;

(c) nothing in this Act shall affect the punishment provided for an offence by the enactments specially relating to that offence.".

This is essentially a technical amendment. The Bill as drafted provides that any enactment creating a felony shall be construed as creating an offence but makes no explicit provision for the abolition of felonies which may not be provided for by enactment, but by a rule of law, a common law felony. My amendment clarifies that the Bill abolishes felonies to all intents and purposes and as a result there is no need for the inclusion in the Third Schedule of repeals of enactments designating particular offences as felonies. The amendment of the Third Schedule, therefore, deletes two such references in that Schedule.

Amendment agreed to.
Section, as amended agreed to.
Sections 16 and 17 agreed to.
FIRST SCHEDULE.

I move amendment No. 9:

In page 10, paragraph 4, line 28, to delete "striken" and substitute "stricken".

This is simply a drafting amendment.

Amendment agreed to.
First Schedule, as amended, agreed to.
Second Schedule agreed to.
THIRD SCHEDULE.

I move amendment No. 9a:

In page 16, lines 16 to 18, to delete the entries relating to "No. 14 of 1976" and "No. 32 of 1976".

Amendment agreed to.

I move amendment No. 10:

In page 16, column 3, line 25, opposite the reference in column 1 to "No. 16 of 1990", after "section 6" to insert "and paragraph 4(t) of the First Schedule".

This is a drafting amendment.

Amendment agreed to.
Third Schedule, as amended, agreed to.
Title agreed to.
Report of the Select Committee.

I propose the following draft report:

The Select Committee has considered the Bill and has made amendments thereto. The Bill, as amended, is reported to the Dáil.

Report agreed to.

Ordered to the Dáil accordingly.

I thank the committee for passing Committee Stage of this Bill. This Bill started life in 1966 and is mature legislation as it is 30 years old. I am glad we have reached the stage of removing anarchic and out of date concepts in our law. I thank Deputies present, Mr. Ritchie Ryan, and Mr. Kevin Condon, who have worked on this and other legislation over recent years.

I thank the Minister and her officials on the work which they have done on this Bill and the Chairman for the manner in which he conducted proceedings, with the exception of when we deviated to deal with some other business. I also thank the clerks of the committee. This is an historic day in the history of the country as we have got rid of slave trading, garrotting and whipping.

I thank the Minister, her officials and the Chairman. I look forward to returning on Report Stage to the constitutional qualms that were expressed and especially to the Minister's response on section 6 which gives wide powers to the Garda to enter, search and seize.

I thank the Minister and Deputies. In thanking everybody for their attendance, I apologise to the Minister's officials for attending here diligently on a number of occasions in recent times when we did not get out of the starting blocks for reasons which have been well documented in other fora. It is yet another important justice Bill being channelled through this committee. Members will be aware that by virtue of the committee's schedule this is one of many Bills which we have to discuss between now and Christmas. This is an active committee channelling legislation which will improve society.

The Select Committee adjourned at 5.20 p.m.

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