Mary Upton (Dublin South Central, Labour)

There are two important elements to this amendment. Precedents already exist in other legislation allowing for this type of amendment to be put in place. It is not as if an unusual provision is being sought. The second element concerns the power given to the Minister. It is true that when dealing with any modification, particularly with regulations, the Minister has the exclusive power to bring in that regulation. This is neither good for the Minister nor the House. Regarding regulations introduced in the past, it is important the opportunity exists to have a full debate on them. It would serve to protect the Minister because of the potential far-reaching consequences of any regulation that may be introduced.

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