The Copyright and Related Rights Bill was described by the Minister of State for Enterprise, Trade and Employment as perhaps the most significant milestone yet in a programme of intellectual property law reform.

Mr Tom Kitt said current Irish copyright law had been the subject of complaint from our European and international trading partners in general on the basis that Ireland had failed to take on board a number of promised copyright reforms.

"The suggestion has been made that we are only bringing this long-needed reform forward now as a result of international pressure. Let me make this clear. Neither this Government, nor its recent predecessors, should make any excuse for the inaction on copyright reform over many years. This was inexcusable."

Mr Kitt said that the Bill put in place a modern, effective, efficient, technology-neutral regime of statutory protection for copyright and related rights. It also brought Irish law into conformity with all obligations incurred under international law on copyright and provided, for the first time in law, tailor-made regimes of civil protection for performers' rights, rights in performances and non-original data bases in line with the best EU and international standards. Mr David Stanton (FG, Cork East) said copyright had to do with preserving the intellectual relationship between the author and his or her work. On balance, justice was on the side of the artists, and he asked the Minister to examine the issue and formulate an amendment to the Bill so the right could be enshrined in law.

Mr Stanton said he could understand the objections of the newspaper owners.

"They, too, must deal with electronic publications and the convergence of media. The national newspapers, while maintaining that their view is in line with the international situation, stress the fact that in order to compete effectively in the modern age they must own the copyright of material generated by their in-house journalists in the same way that owners of competing information services do.

"They feel that the relevant section should be deleted and they are at total variance with the journalists on this point. I look forward to both groups debating their points before the joint committee shortly.

"I will not come down on any side until I have heard all the facts and teased out the issues."

The Labour spokesman on enterprise, trade and employment, Mr Pat Rabbitte, said it was not surprising that a number of diverse interests, quite legitimately, wanted to advocate their case in respect of the detail of the Bill. He said he supported Mr Stanton's proposal that the relevant select committee be given the opportunity to hear from those vested interests.

He believed, he added, that the level of awareness of the Bill, inside and outside the House, was minimal. The Bill passed its second stage.