Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 13 November 2013

Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform: Select Sub-Committee on Public Expenditure and Reform

Freedom of Information Bill 2013: Committee Stage (Resumed)

4:30 pm

Photo of Brendan HowlinBrendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The Deputy does not know that. I suppose one could say any question with the word "Taoiseach" in it is the same; that seems to be the logic of the argument. I do not think so, but the bottom line is, thankfully, that it will not be the Deputy or me who will make the determinations. There will be a code of conduct set down which, as I promised yesterday, we will bring to the committee. There will then be an appeal to the independent Information Commissioner who is probably more objective than either of us in these matters. He will make the determination on what it is appropriate to link.

Deputy Fleming started off with talk of a U-turn. I have tried since I became a Minister and previously when I had the honour to be a Minister to engage on Committee Stage. I accepted the second amendment proposed by Deputy McDonald yesterday. I did not see the fireworks or U-turns announced when I accepted it because it was a sensible suggestion. That is what Committee Stage should be about. If we moved away from talk about U-turns and engage as mature people in a parliamentary committee, we could have more engagement and more sensible responses from both sides. One has to listen to the arguments made. I was never of the view that this side of the House or the Government in any guise was the repository of all wisdom. The purpose of the parliamentary system is to parse and analyse legislation. Let us grow up and stop trying to make political points on these matters.