Dan Boyle (Cork South Central, Green Party)

When this Bill was published earlier in the year, the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform produced a briefing note to the office of the Government Chief Whip, which was subsequently transmitted to the party Whips of all groupings in the House. That note listed the main features of this Bill and highlighted eight bullet points with regard to what the Bill is about. Half way through the briefing note, it mentions that the Minister intends to bring forward further additions to the Bill during its passage through the House. There then follows ten bullet points.

If anything describes the ad hoc nature of how legislation is processed through the House, it is the presentation of a Bill that is followed by a briefing, followed by a debate from which a whole new Bill results. I suspect that when the Bill eventually goes to Committee Stage, we will see further bullet points emanating from the Minister's imagination. I will give the Minister of State some benefit of the doubt if he wants to put his——

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