Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for their presentations. They have put a huge amount of work into them, which will be very useful as we go through this process.

My first question relates to proposals for taking greater account of the voice of the child. It is really welcome that this provision is to be strengthened. What protections and supports will need to be put in place in this regard? We are talking about very vulnerable children for whom court settings will be foreign.

Do the witnesses have any suggestions or ideas about that?

I want to get the situation regarding childminding straight in my head. This legislation will just remove the exemption and will enable the Minister to make regulations subsequently. Will any further changes that are being made to put childminding onto a statutory footing be done through regulations? Is it correct that there will be no Dáil scrutiny, input or oversight of what goes into the regulations?