Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

No. It is important to get clarity on this for once and for all. It is under the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and there are three Ministers involved in the legislation. The quickest method of bringing the legislation to the House is the format we want to advance. A final decision must be made by the Attorney General and he must advise whether we should amalgamate and provide new legislation or whether it would be more expeditious to amend existing legislation. From what I can ascertain, the view is that, as there are three Departments involved, we must consider whether if we amend three pieces of legislation we will get the legislation through the House as quickly as if we had an omnibus piece of legislation. The final decision will be made on the basis of how quickly the legislation can be brought through the House.

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