Opposition parties will not stand in the way of new Government legislation aimed at closing the loophole in the State's statutory rape laws.
Fine Gael's Justice spokesman Jim O'Keeffe said he welcomed the main provisions of the draft but also expressed concerns at the Bill's failure to implement gender neutrality in all areas.
"The provisions restoring the protection of young people from sexual predators in this new Bill are to be strongly welcomed," he said.
Labour's Brendan Howlin said that while the Bill will undoubtedly close off the loophole, as drafted it raises serious concerns.
Meanwhile, the Green party called on the Minister to refer his draft legislation to the Ombudsman for Children.
"Given the rushed nature of the legislation, it may be wise to impose a 'sunset clause' within the legislation in order that the Oireachtas revisits the issue within two years," concluded deputy Ciarán Cuffe of the Green's concluded.
The draft legislation was circulated amongst TDs this evening and the full legislation is expected to be published tomorrow morning.
The loophole in the old legislation was exposed last week after the Supreme Court struck down a 1935 law because it did not allow an accused person put forward a defence that he had made an honest mistake as to the girl's age.
The decision lead to a 41-year-old man, jailed for having sex with a 12-year-old girl, walking free on Tuesday.
The man, known as Mr A, was freed by the High Court from prison, where he was serving a three-year sentence for unlawful carnal knowledge of the girl in 2003.
Brian Lenihan: Government considered Law Reform Commission's recommendation to change law but
Minister for State for Children Brian Lenihan said today that the new law would not lower the age of consent for sexual intercourse. Minister for Justice Michael McDowell last night said he was abandoning an earlier plan to set a new age of consent for boys and girls at 16.
Mr Lenihan said the new law would create a "maximum zone of protection for children."
Speaking on RTÉ radio, he said the age of consent would not be reduced as "the signal we want to set out is that of the protection of children."
The Dáil and Seanad are to meet tomorrow to rush through the new Bill.
Under the new legislation, those convicted of having sex with individuals under 17 years of age would face jail for up to five years. Those convicted of the more serious offence of having sex with individuals under 15 will face a penalty of up to life imprisonment.
But Mr Lenihan said that following last week's Supreme Court ruling, the right of accused to defend themselves on the grounds that they genuinely believe that the individual concerned was above the age of consent will be included in the new legislation. However, the burden of proof will remain with the accused, he said.
Mr Lenihan said the new law would be gender neutral unlike the 1935 legislation, which made it illegal for underage males to have sex with underage girls but not vice versa. In cases of sex between underage persons, under the new law, it will be up to prosecuting authorities to decide on proceeding with a case or not, he added.
However, the Minister said the issue of consensual sex would not be included in the new law as the Government believed children should not "have to defend their position in court".
Brian Cowen: doesn't agree with Supreme Court ruling
The Government has come under fierce attack from the Opposition over its failure to pre-empt the current situation by amending the legislation prior to the Supreme Court's decision.
Referring to a Law Reform Commission's recommendation in 1990 that the 1935 law should be changed, Mr Lenihan said: "The Government through the Department of Justice, looked at the recommendation and decided not to proceed with [replacing] it.
"The Government took the view at the time that this defence of an honest mistake as to an age shouldn't be allowed and that when you are talking about children that people should be careful . . . children should not be put into a position of being questioned and their credibility undermined in court cases where their protection is at issue," he said.
Mr Lenihan said: "Now that argument is over. The Supreme Court has arrived at a different point of view and that's their entitlement. The Government is not always obliged to legislate in accordance with the wishes of the Law Reform Commission. They do actually have to take a view on these issues."
Speaking in Dublin this morning, Minister for Finance Brian Cowen said the Government was left to pick up the pieces after the Supreme Court decision.
"I respect the Court, of course I do. I mightn't agree with the outcome of the decision, as a parent apart from anything else of young children myself," he told reporters.
"But I have to now do our job by restricting, insofar as we can, the impact and the consequences that flow from it."
