Jim O'Keeffe (Cork South West, Fine Gael)

That is not correct. These are simple, sensible, effective measures that are supported by right-thinking people. The Bill represents an honest and considered approach to this national and important issue. We expected, given the statements from the Government parties and the challenge issued to me in the House last November by the Minister, that the Bill would be favourably received and that the Government, which has passed so much incidental law on justice, would see the merits in our proposal and support the Bill. Is that how the Minister, Deputy McDowell, received the Bill? It was not. Instead of constructive acceptance, we were met with facetious assertions that had no basis in fact, fanciful scenarios that stretched the bounds of credibility, one-upmanship of the most deplorable kind and, as ever from this Government, the most selfish and self-serving stubbornness.

When given a set of sensible proposals, the Minister went about trying to dream up situations which he thought might introduce doubt into this debate. He invented circumstances that might challenge the Bill instead of looking at the strengths that he knew were in it. Earlier in the debate, one of the ludicrous settings with which the Minister sought to question the Bill was that of a gate-crasher at a party. He tried to insinuate that if someone tried to gate-crash a party, that person would be torn limb from limb and that no-one would bear responsibility.

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