Trevor Sargent
Ceist:8 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Justice if the telephone of any public representative is currently being tapped.
Ceisteanna — Questions. Oral Answers. - Telephone Tapping.
As has been indicated to the House by my predecessors on several occasions, warrants for the monitoring of telephone calls are issued in very exceptional circumstances in the public interest, when this is necessary for security purposes or for the prevention and detection of serious crime and then only for the securing of information which can be obtained in no other way.
It has never been the practice to disclose the precise information sought in this question and I do not propose to depart from established practice on this occasion. However, there is a precedent for informing the House that no warrant is in force in respect of the telephone of any Member of the Oireachtas and I propose to avail of this precedent to assure the House that no such warrant has been authorised by me as Minister for Justice.
Would the Minister agree that it is valid for Members of the House at least to be aware of the current position in so far as it relates to national security? Would the Minister reassure Members, and indeed the general public, on the legal limits that exist regarding the use of such information obtained? I refer, in particular, to current events. Would the Minister agree that the recent publication of private conversations between members of the British royal family which resulted, apparently, from MI5 phone tapping investigations, suggests that it is almost impossible to guarantee any security or confidentiality in the use of such information?
The Deputy is going beyond the subject matter of the question.
The Deputy is aware that this matter is the subject of a Bill which is currently before the Dáil and I understand Report Stage of that Bill will be debated in this House next week.
The Minister said that she has not signed a warrant in relation to any Member of the House. Can we take it that no warrant exists in relation to any Member of the House pre-dating the Minister's appointment?
That is what I have said.
In view of the fact that the Minister distinguished between Members of the Oireachtas and public representatives, which was the subject matter of the question, can I take it from her response that the telephones of some local authority members are being tapped?
It is not usual to give that type of information in this House and I do not intend to depart from the precedents in relation to the matter today.