Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I will address the process very briefly. To the Minister's credit, he has been very open to a substantial number of amendments to various Parts of the Bill. It is to members' credit that they withdrew most amendments. I know we want this Bill passed into law as soon as possible but it must be right. Based on the three days of debate we have just completed, a great deal of work remains to be done and the Minister has agreed that he needs to consider many issues. My understanding of what will happen next is that the Minister will consider the three days of debate. He has offered to provide members with access to clinicians regarding some of the issues and has undertaken to meet the committee informally. That will probably be a long meeting because a significant number of issues need to be discussed. I understand the Minister will provide members with his proposed amendments or set out his detailed thinking and we will subsequently have time to craft and submit our own amendments. As the Minister did not propose amendments on Committee Stage, other than one on reporting, the Committee Stage debate was a little like a pre-legislative scrutiny session in respect of some of the issues. I guess what we are seeking is a mid-legislative scrutiny session. Is that the Minister's understanding? While we want this provided for in law, it must be right.