Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Then we are back to the point where we genuinely have no practical example of that having come through the consultation. I am not being flippant in any way on this matter but we must, at some point, decide what the protected characteristics are. What we used to inform the wording was the public consultation, which took place long before my time in the Department of Justice. There was an extensive process in 2019. We have tried to capture all the matters that came up, specifically race, colour, nationality, religion, national or ethnic origin, descent, gender, sex characteristics, sexual orientation, and disability. As I said, in regard to references to "religion", we have included the words "the absence of a religious conviction or belief". I can reflect on that further but that is genuinely the view we arrived at based on the consultation. I have not heard this matter raised as a genuine concern before. Obviously, the Deputy believes it is and for that reason, I will reflect on the matter further.