Mr. Vincent Jennings:

I will just take the last part. I would like there to be collaboration of both finance and justice because we saw how close we went on the most recent occasion where it seemed very clear that the Minister was of a mind to accept. Not only was he of a mind to accept, but there were at least five instances where judges awarded an additional 17% and 18% extra in awards in anticipation of something coming through. It is very clear that the original judgment by the courts said that the Oireachtas should be in charge of accepting the Judicial Council guidelines. The Oireachtas - I am not educating members - is more than the Government; it is the Houses. I think that some of the committees of the Houses should debate the recommendations the next time rather than it being done in one Department - the Department of justice - or with the assistance of the Department of Finance. Democracy is best upheld by being transparent and open, as in these committee rooms, and that is what I was talking about. My colleague will talk about the other matters. Certainly, I believe that the committees, both this committee and the committee on justice, should actually decide those or, if they cannot decide, make recommendations based upon having a full hearing of the matter with all stakeholders present.