New Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan has been urged to show independence and to avoid becoming a "prisoner" of the decisions of the Government and its predecessor.
Fianna Fáil justice spokesman Jim O'Callaghan made the plea on Tuesday as Mr Flanagan addressed the Dáil for the first time as Minister for Justice, during a debate to extend emergency anti-terrorism and organised crime legislation for another 12 months.
The Dáil is required to debate the extension of the legislation each year.
The House voted by 75 votes to 29 to accept the renewal for a further year of the relevant sections of the Offences Against the State (Amendment) Act, 1998.
TDs also voted by 72 to 28 in favour of the renewal of the Criminal Justice (Amendment) Act, 2009, which allows for organised crime offences to be heard in the non-jury Special Criminal Court, to guard against the possibility of interference with juries by criminal gangs.
Mr O’Callaghan congratulated Mr Flanagan on his appointment and said he was happy to work with him on the important issues faced by his department, as Fianna Fáil had done with the Minister’s predecessor.
“However, I hope he will bring his own independent viewpoint to bear on issues on his desk and have an input into them, rather than being a prisoner of what the Government and the previous government agreed.”
Introducing the debate, Mr Flanagan acknowledged criticism of the brevity of the annual report that was produced to justify the retention of the emergency measures. The report came in at just 1,200 words last year.
Calling for the Dáil to renew the legislation, the Minister said the Offences Against the State legislation was focused on threats related to the North, which remained “real and persistent”.
He added that the Act could be necessary due “to the international terrorist threat we have witnessed recently in shocking attacks in London, Paris and Manchester.
“Sadly, the nature of that threat means that all open democracies now face it.”
Referring to the use of the Special Criminal Court, Mr Flanagan said: “We greatly value trial by jury and we must protect it, but we cannot ignore the threat posed to the criminal process by criminal gangs in our community.”
Mr O’Callaghan criticised the speed with which the motions were expedited in the Dáil, but he said Fianna Fáil would support the extension of the emergency measures.
21st-century challenges
Sinn Féin justice spokesman Jonathan O’Brien said the reality was that “the Garda and the courts are facing 21st-century challenges with 20th-century legislation, and this needs to change.
“The current outdated criminal justice system does not act as a deterrent to organised criminals. In fact, it is being exploited by them.”
He said the emergency Acts should be repealed and replaced with legislation that provided for new courts to deal with organised crime cases.
“The Garda and the criminal justice system need to be equipped to effectively and relentlessly target organised crime bosses, their operations and their assets,” he said.
“Sophisticated, organised, well-resourced and murderous threats to citizens require a focused and rigorous response.
“Any strategy to counter the threat posed by crime gangs with a huge international reach needs to be multilayered, and one of those layers needs to be at community level.”
