Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

Occasionally, it spills out.

On amendment No. 90, it will not damage the Minister to acknowledge in the law that he should have regard to the desirability of facilitating persons engaged in sporting or other lawful use of firearms. He has agreed with this publicly and, for once, he should kick the traces of his advisers.

I accept the Minister's point on amendment No. 91 that he does not want himself or his successors to be second-guessed by the High Court. Will he, however, accept the first tranche of the amendment which would formally allow people who feel aggrieved to appeal directly to the Minister? The proposed subsection (2) simply refers to a rejection or acceptance of the case made. Subsection (3), which I will not press, simply allows people to write to the Minister to state a case.

See this speech in context