asked the Taoiseach if he will state the progress to date of the discussions between the Attorney General and the relevant British authorities arising from his last meeting with the British Prime Minister.

At our meeting on 6 November last the British Prime Minister and I invited our respective Attorneys General to consider what further improvements might be possible to ensure that those who committed crimes in one jurisdiction should not be able to escape prosecution and conviction by seeking refuge in the other.

Following a meeting between the two Attorneys General a number of ways in which such improvements might be achieved are currently under examination at official level and it is envisaged that the Attorneys General will meet again soon to pursue their discussions.

As is the normal practice in discussions of this kind, in which the opinions of the Attorneys General must be referred to the respective Governments, it has been agreed that details should be treated as confidential for the present. For this reason it is not possible for me to give any fuller information in this regard.

4.