Govt has no plans to change law on victim statements

Tánaiste Brian Cowen has said the Government has no plans to change the law relating to the way victim impact statements are made in court.

Mr Cowen was answering questions in the Dáil about remarks last night by Mr Justice Paul Carney criticising the mother of Robert Holohan, who was killed in Co Cork in January 2005.

During a sentencing hearing, Majella Holohan departed from her agreed victim impact statement to refer to semen traces found on her son's body, even though this evidence was not part of the trial.

Mr Cowen said this morning that such issues were a matter for the courts, which operate separate from the legislature.