Mrs. Justice Catherine McGuinness:

I appreciate there is that difficulty about term limits but as I said before it arises from the sort of constitutional law we have. Senator Healy-Eames asked if we can satisfy the A, B and C v. Ireland judgment without head 4 or the Supreme Court decision in X and I do not think we can. Is it unconstitutional to introduce time limits? Perhaps the Oireachtas should try it and see if it is ruled unconstitutional. It might be something the Oireachtas could consider but, as things stand, it is difficult. The Government probably does not want to introduce new difficulties that are going to make constitutional challenges practically a certainty but it might be worth a go.
I entirely agree with Dr. Binchy that it is possible to change everything by referendum. Perhaps the reason we feel wary of the idea of a referendum is the level of virtually abusive lobbying that goes on every time there is a referendum and every time this issue comes up. Perhaps we should be looking at the psychological care of the various, particularly Fine Gael Deputies, who have been subjected to this kind of lobbying. Perhaps they are the ones who should be looking for psychological care.