Ms Clare Dunne:

Because the dependent spouse or partner of the critical skills permit holder now has an automatic entitlement to apply for any job in the State, there is no need to address it in the legislation.

During the drafting of the legislation we will consider broader issues that we do not necessarily have to underpin in the legislation and that can be done by regulation. We will probably look at how we deal with spouses of workers coming in on a general employment permit. It is time for us to look at that. Even though we have received representations about that issue, it is something we might deal with by way of regulation.