Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Yes, absolutely. The Deputy is right and we are all ad idemon that. It is not that we are in any way trying to suggest that someone's livelihood outranks public safety, it certainly does not. Public safety is what this legislation and the CORU process are about. Acknowledging that this is priority number one and picking up on Deputy O'Reilly's point, we must acknowledge also there are people who are validly qualified to carry out musculoskeletal therapy. They are known as physical therapists in this country. This is the anomaly that has arisen. They are not validly qualified to carry out other procedures that physiotherapists carry out. There needs to be a very clear understanding of the distinct difference in that respect.

Regarding the issue of sanction, without being in any way flippant about an important issue, it is not possible to sanction somebody unless they have done something wrong. That is the way we regulate every profession in this country, but the risk of sanction is extraordinarily high. The idea that somebody would purposefully risk his or her livelihood, business, profession and reputation is a pretty substantial one. I am bringing forward a proposal today, in an effort to be helpful, to go further in this area than we have gone before in terms of the regulating of professions by looking to see if we can underpin a professional code of conduct in primary legislation. My officials will work on drafting some proposals. We will engage with the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists, ISCP, the Irish Association of Physical Therapists, IAPT, and with members of this committee before Report Stage.