Mr. Noel Dowling:

Not only might it be unconstitutional but it could also be ultra vires regarding the European legislation, which refers to the right to a public hearing. Although a party to an unfair dismissal claim can decide not to have the case heard by a rights commissioner - which would be in camera, that is, in private - and have it dealt with instead by the Employment Appeals Tribunal, the reality is that the vast majority of cases have gone directly to the tribunal. The reason for this is that employers have objected to hearings of the rights commissioner being held in camera. That is strange.
I thank Senator White for her kind remarks about our presentation. I know it was not her intention but it seemed that, as she concluded, the Senator was preparing to present us all with gold watches.