Pearse Doherty (Donegal, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Amendment No. 8 relates to mediation. The point is similar to the point I was making with amendment No. 4. It relates to the Mediation Act. I wish to reflect on the Long Title and what it tells us about the purpose of it. It refers to an Act "to facilitate the settlement of disputes by mediation, to specify the principles applicable to mediation, to specify arrangements for mediation as an alternative to the institution of civil proceedings or to the continuation of civil proceedings that have been instituted". The question arises as to why this would not be included in the Bill as a step to take into account. Basically, the amendment inserts in page 5 an additional term: "or mediation as per the Mediation Act 2017". Obviously the process is now legally underpinned by statute and should be included as part of the steps that would be taken into account.