Liam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)

The Minister of State does not know what he is doing. He has not read his own legislation. I have pored over the legislation to check whether I have been wrong but all the Minister of State does in response is issue press releases. He did not respond to my questions on Second Stage, on Committee Stage or in the House today. He will issue a press release at approximately 3.30 p.m. today, hoping that will be the only response necessary to the difficult questions being asked of him in the House. He has done that since last May.

We have pored over this legislation and make the assumption that an elderly person, living alone or with somebody over 21 who has any significant income, will lose his or her house whatever the value. The Minister of State has not challenged that assumption at all during the course of this debate. He bluffs us with regulations and tells us to trust the HSE. It is a disgraceful way for a Minister of State to conduct himself when pushing legislation through the House.

I understand why the Tánaiste this morning spoke about legislation passing through this House. The Government has probably the worst record in recent years for having legislation thrown out by the Supreme Court. Now we are dealing with legislation that the Minister of State cannot fully explain to the Opposition.

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