The Tánaiste and Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell, has confirmed that he intends to change the law to allow home owners defend themselves from intruders as recommended by the Law Reform Commission.
However he insisted that the change would not represent what he called a 'licence to kill'.
The Law Reform Commission has said that laws governing the use of self-defence against intruders in the home need to be tightened up.
In a consultation paper published last night the commission said there was a compelling need to set out the extent of force, including lethal force, that may be used to repel an attack.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio's Morning Ireland, one of the authors of the paper, Professor Finbarr McAuley, said legislation governing the use of lethal force was currently too vague.
