Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Can I take it that we are going to ask for that second opinion? For the purposes of absolute certainty, no one here is doubting the good faith in which legal advice has been given to this committee. Our colleagues in the office of the parliamentary legal adviser should not take this the wrong way but we now have two contradictory views. For the purposes of carrying out our work, as described by the Chairman, but perhaps more important for the sake of Mr. Ryan himself, we need to know if he is covered by the legislation. We should ask for that second opinion. It should be underscored as being a matter of some urgency. We may uncover a defect in the legislation, although I find Mr. Hennessy's advice very persuasive. It is, however, a matter of interpretation.