Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, United Left) | Oireachtas source

Deputy Ó Snodaigh has covered most of the area. These amendments propose deleting "18" and substituting "16" in the areas dealing with gender recognition certificates, the appeals process, etc. I appeal to the Minister to come back with something on this before Report Stage in a couple of weeks. I know he is to meet different groups over that period and listen to what they have to say. The amendments also relate to parental consent and self-declaration for 16 to 18 year olds, because by the time somebody goes through the court process for a report they will be 18 anyway, even if they start the process at 16. We would be better off dealing with the issue now. I appeal to the Minister to reconsider over the next couple of weeks between now and Report Stage.