Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

I will raise only one matter on the Order of Business. In the previous Dáil the Labour Party, through Deputy Howlin, introduced a Bill to provide for civil unions or civil partnerships. The Bill was deemed to have passed Second Stage but the six month run on it elapsed during the general election period. A motion tabled by my party in the House last October to have the Bill referred to committee was voted down by the Government with the promise that it would have the heads of its own Bill published by the end of March. While I am fairly reasonable and do not mind if things run on a couple of weeks, I note from reports in The Irish Times this morning that there are differences in Government over this Bill and it may be delayed. Are there differences between the Government parties about bringing a civil partnership or civil unions Bill before the House? Where stands the commitment, given to the House when the Labour Party brought its Bill to the House, that the heads of the Government's Bill would be published by the end of March?

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