Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)

I have made my response. This is simply repeating in this legislation a provision that exists in the 1978 Act, which nobody would suggest has been abused. It concerns the functions of the authority around medical education or the practice of medicine or EU directives. It is not reasonable to have to consult a body to assign functions. If a body were in a position to indicate it would not take the functions, another body would have to be established or the first body may have to be dissolved. This is normal practice in much legislation and I do not believe anybody has ever been accused of abusing it. As I have stated, it can be annulled by the Oireachtas. In effect, it must be subject to the approval of the Oireachtas.

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