Mark Wall (Kildare South, Labour)

I welcome our guests. It is good to speak with them again after our previous conversation.

I have a couple of questions. I apologise for missing the start of the contributions. My first question may have been addressed earlier. How much communication or queries has FLAC had about this pension? We have all had queries, and I have had them from throughout the State. As a body, what kind of questions have been asked of FLAC and how many people have contacted FLAC on this?

I have had concern for a while surrounding who qualifies for this and who does not, which has been mentioned and gone through. I queried the Minister on an ex gratia payment and he said he would look at it. Obviously, it will have to be looked at by the Department. Does FLAC have any idea what that payment will look like or what it would like it to look like? How much should that payment be? Are we talking about a contributory pension? It is a concern for many people I deal with who are worried they may not qualify.

My final question relates to the regulations the Minister will have if this Bill passes. It is a very progressive Bill, as has been said, and it is welcome and timely. Again, we remember the O'Meara family, who have been involved in this. This question has arisen time and again, but does FLAC have any idea what "intimate and committed" means? In the regulations the Minister will bring forward subsequent to this Bill's passage, what would FLAC like to see as "intimate and committed" and are there timeframes or anything else FLAC would like to see involved there?