Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)

It is interesting to hear the Taoiseach talk of a five-year plan with regard to children. The Children Act was a 2001 Act and therefore the five years are up. Judgment calls, and the judgment being made is not great. I am referring not to myself but to the groups which would like their voices heard here, and they say the Government has not acted to protect children sufficiently.

What is the timeframe for the report of the all-party committee? Given the rushed manner of the legislation, was the Taoiseach surprised that the Council of State was not called to assess its constitutionality? Would he welcome the Council of State being called together and the President having an input into the testing of the constitutionality of the legislation before it happens in the unexpected way I predict will happen?

The issue of inequality is one over which the Taoiseach will continue to stand with regard to this legislation. He says discrimination is permissible in certain cases. Does he not accept that an opportunity exists to ensure there is no discrimination on this matter and that it would be preferable to take the route of not discriminating against one gender or another? Given the Government is so committed to inequality in terms of what the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform has so proudly espoused, I know it will take a change of Government to rule out inequality in general. However, with regard to this legislation, the Government could end the inequality overnight just as it enacted the legislation overnight. What is the timeframe for the all-party committee? We need to get our amendment through to ensure the discrimination is removed so that we will not face another constitutional challenge on the basis of the discrimination so patent in the legislation.

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