Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)

With regard to the period of five working days, I presume, if we are counting the clock, that we are talking in real terms about expiry by this day next week, 6 November.

With regard to Deputy Neville's question about carrying out the further replacement renewal orders and the assessment of all of the 200-plus clients, the Minister stated that the Attorney General had pressed for a further examination of all of these patients in advance of the introduction of this legislation. If I remember correctly what the Minister indicated earlier, the Attorney General sought this almost a fortnight ago. How long did it take to carry out the clinical examination in regard to each of the patients concerned? Will this be a proper reassessment of each of the patients or is it simply to go through the motions in order to meet with the detail of the legislation now presenting and the five day requirement? Will this be a genuine clinical re-evaluation of each of the patients concerned, albeit within a very short time following the carrying out of the Attorney General's request in advance of the introduction of this legislation?

If this was flagged by the Attorney General a fortnight ago, it underscores the very irregular way in which we are dealing with this legislation, which was rushed here this evening. As the Minister has already admitted, the dates of all of this go further back than she believed when she gave us a briefing at 2.30 p.m. It is most regrettable that this had not been done in a more thought-out and programmatic way, and that we did not have better time and opportunity to inform ourselves to properly engage with the legislation now presented.

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