Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)

A motion to instruction the committee is a technical procedure to enable a committee in effect to consider amendments wider than the scope of the Bill as passed on Second Stage. However, what appears to be a narrow technical motion is important from the parliamentary perspective in that it allows the principle of the new amendments to be discussed in a debate similar to Second Stage. Although these motions to instruct have not always been debated, I welcome the fact that this one will today be debated in the House and hope that will become the norm.

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