Seán Sherlock (Cork East, Labour) | Oireachtas source

In support of that, the reasoning for our amendments is that guardians could and would have the time to engage with children in a way that social workers would not. We have borne witness to the infrastructure that exists in this country, the shortage of social workers, the constraints and so on. Where there were court proceedings, the guardian ad litemwould fulfil a specific role. I do not think the Minister would necessarily disagree with what I am saying. We are all largely on the same page about seeking to ensure that the rights of the child are adhered to as per the constitutional amendment. Again we find ourselves slightly constrained with regard to what we proposed.