The Minister for Justice, Mr O'Donoghue, has said comments on divorce in Ireland made by the former Attorney General, Mr John Rogers SC, were "totally misleading".
In an article in The Irish Times on Saturday Mr Rogers said the power of Irish citizens to influence decisions affecting their lives would be "significantly reduced" by the Treaty of Nice.
He gave an example of an EU regulation, in effect since the end of March, which could have "profound effects" on Irish divorce laws. Under the regulation a person in the EU may apply for divorce, legal separation or annulment if resident in a particular country for a year. "This is a most important law which has a direct effect on this State," he noted.
However, Mr O'Donoghue said yesterday that under the Divorce Act 1996, the Irish courts might also grant a divorce to a person who was ordinarily resident in the State for one year. These judgments of the Irish courts, he said, would be recognised in other EU countries.
Mr O'Donoghue said he wanted to remind Mr Rogers that a motion was passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas allowing Ireland to opt into the measure and that this particular regulation relating to divorce, Brussels II, was adopted by the Council of Ministers on the basis of unanimity. "If the regulation did not suit Ireland, we did not have to be bound by it," he said.
"The people of Ireland have voted on a number of occasions for the free movement of people within the EU. It is only logical that the EU caters for the free movement of judgments to facilitate the free movement of people.
The Nice Treaty will not adversely affect divorce laws in Ireland. However, the treaty will offer more economic opportunities from which all our people will benefit," the Minister said.
Mr Rogers, as attorney general, nominated by the Labour Party, wrote the wording for the unsuccessful 1986 divorce referendum.