Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)

Thank you. I never thought I wandered before, however, a certain amount of latitude is granted to people from time to time. I emphasise that individually and collectively we all have a role to play as individuals in this House. I see the means in this House of addressing some of the problems and that is a matter for us. We must have the guts to give hard answers to hard questions.

When I was a Minister of State, as Deputy Brian Lenihan is now, an official in the Department came to me one morning in a terrible panic because somebody had tabled a parliamentary question which he believed could be very embarrassing. I looked at the question and did not consider it embarrassing. I had no difficulty answering that question. It was answered and was therefore done and dusted. There are those who believe a question is done and dusted if one does not answer it. It is not and that is the difference.

Let me refer to a number of professionals, some of whom are included, some of whom are not and others of whom do not need to be included. They all have a responsibility to maintain a high standard of service and integrity within their respective professions. They have done great work in times gone by and some, but not all, still do so. Unfortunately, those who dally and do not aspire to the highest standards result in everyone being branded as the same, as is the case in politics. This is the sad part but it is the way it is.

I was listening to Deputy Glennon who was perplexed by the degree to which two professionals can argue over a particular title. It should be possible for mature professionals to work out a solution that accommodates both their professions, unless the services they offer are identical, in which case there should be a means of differentiating between the two.

I support the principle in the Bill of introducing a list of professions, standards and what I hope will amount to accountability and transparency. I hope that as a result of the passage of the legislation, attention will be paid to a number of other areas that have been referred to in the course of the debate and which now urgently need attention.

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