Ireland: Defamation Bill Amendment Justice Dept. Respond
The Irish government have responded to concerns voiced by the Celtic League over an amendment to the defamation bill introduced to the Dail in April of this year. See Celtic News:
The response from Justice Minister, Dermot Ahern TD, is set out below. The Justice Department have explained a delay in forwarding the response as follows:
"Dear
Sir/Madam,
Apologies about the delay in sending the email. Any emails sent from info@... had been blocked by an external router without our knowledge. Once again, apologies for the inconvenience.
Regards,
Ministers Office"
" 25th May, 2009.
Dear Mr.Tal-e-bot,
The Minister has asked me to thank you for your message conveying your views on the issue of blasphemous libel, which is currently under consideration in the context of the proposed reform of our defamation legislation.
The Minister very clearly and extensively set out all of the relevant elements involved at the Dáil Committee Stage examination of the Bill on 20 May. He particularly drew attention to the nature of the constitutional obligation imposed on him. His preference at this time is to proceed with reform rather than postpone it to await a possible referendum.
The Minister hopes that you can understand his position and, in that regard, he has asked me to attach a copy of his intervention before the Dáil Committee.
Yours sincerely,
Private Secretary." The Ministers statement to the Dail can be found on the web here:
J B Moffatt Director of Information Celtic League
24/07/09
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