Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I thank Mr. O'Brien for being so succinct and pragmatic in his initial paper and his responses. It helps me to remind myself from time to time why we are here. We are here because of the catastrophe taking place. We are also here because the Irish people are insisting the Government, and ourselves in the Houses of the Oireachtas, are seen to do something. What they want us to do is enact a piece of legislation that covers goods. They are equally vociferous in insisting that services are covered. If we back away from this we will have reputational damage but the reputational damage will be here at home. I am minded of the old idea that it is never the wrong time to do the right thing. I am also conscious of the fact that many people have an unrealistic expectation of the impact of enacting this legislation. The impact at best will be the moral and symbolic effect it has in a broader sense.

I want to clarify some points with Mr. O'Brien. He said very clearly that enacting the legislation as far as goods is simple and straightforward, and no bother at all. It is very complex when it comes to services. Does Mr. O'Brien agree with what is being attributed to the Attorney General, that the difficulties there are not only in the working out of it but the complication of EU law?