Maritime Jurisdiction Bill 2021: Committee and Remaining Stages
Seanad Éireann — 2021-06-01
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Barry Ward (FG), Industrial and Commercial Panel

On the requirement for a certificate in section 11, is the authorisation of a particular statutory body, more often than not the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, DPP, required for a particular prosecution? I acknowledge this is a fairly common construct in legislation and I do not have a difficulty with that. However, in subsection (1), which requires a certificate to be granted by the Minister, that then becomes a necessary proof in any prosecution that arises. A further duty is, therefore, created for a prosecutor when this matter goes to court. I agree with Senator Chambers on the constructive approach to this. I appreciate what the Minister of State has said as well, but in the context of this amendment he might comment on whether the certification of the permission or the appropriateness of the prosecution is creating another burden that might be overlooked. For example, in the context of a prosecution, it might make it more difficult to get the matter to a decision in court.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2021-06-01/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:49:21+00:00
Sitting date: 2021-06-01