Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 4 February 2021
185. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Justice the progress she has made to date in respect of legislation regarding the naming of persons in court that may make a person identifiable (details supplied); the timeline in respect of presenting the legislation to Dáil Éireann; and the difficulties she has encountered in drafting this specific piece of legislation. [6245/21]
View answerIt is clear to me that the effect of Section 252 of the Children Act 2001, as recently ruled by the Court of Appeal ruling in DPP v. E.C. and Media Outlet, is having a profoundly negative impact on grieving parents who are unable to remember their deceased children’s names or legacies in public. Being unable to speak publicly about how they want their children to be remembered is wrong and I have committed to changing that.
I intent to bring proposals to Cabinet next week on how to resolve this issue. I have been working with Senator McDowell and Deputy Jim O’Callaghan on this and it is my intention to ask the Government to support a Bill in the Seanad from Senator Michael McDowell. However that Bill requires amending to achieve our shared goals and I will be working to secure Government time in the Seanad in the coming weeks to table the necessary amendments .
I ask that all parties, across the Dáil and Seanad, co-operate in passing the necessary amendment to change Section 252 of the Children Act as quickly as possible in order to give grieving parents back their voice.
Of course any changes to the Children Act will have to be carefully considered to ensure they are consistent with the key principle of the best interests of the child. This is important as the section to be amended was designed to protect child witnesses as well as victims in the criminal justice process.
I understand that issues have also arisen on foot of the ruling regarding cases with respect to persons who were children at the time of the offence but adults when the proceedings were taken against the perpetrators. I am also working to address the effect of the ruling in the context of the legislative amendments that might be required to address this particular matter.
While I am determined to progress these changes as quickly as possible, it is important that in taking forward any legislative amendments, full consideration is given to all potential issues in order to avoid any unintended consequences the changes might give rise to.
