Mr. Noel Dowling:

I will now respond to Deputy Tóibín's questions. In response to his question on the direction from which comes the attempt to change the rules on the ground in advance of the democratic debate, I can only assume they are coming from the quarters that are charged with drafting the new regime. Whether it is accidental or not, I do not know. The reference on the website would be unusual if it was included purely by accident because the people who are charged with it would know all the details of how the tribunal functions.

The Deputy also asked about the vindication of rights and whether people are aware of their rights. As a trade unionist I would say that in the absence of more trade unions and the State making it easier for people to be in trade unions, a great many people are not aware of their rights, but the chairs of the tribunals bend over backwards to be helpful to the claimants who come before it, unaware of how to argue their case. Every effort is made to help people who find it difficult to present their case. It is not a case of being accused of leading the witness. Although it is a quasi judicial process, it works in a more informal way.