Liz McManus (Wicklow, Labour)

I do not want to labour the point but I want to inform those who compile the grouping that the form of grouping used through this Bill is incredibly difficult, mainly because so many amendments have been bundled together. In this instance, even though there are only a few amendments, they should not have been bundled. We are not being well served in terms of the work we must do when there is such aggregation.

In the interests of accountability I ask the Minister to look again at the amendment. It states that where there is a conflict of interest, it would be recorded in an accessible manner. If someone has a conflict of interest and declares it, I do not see a problem. The amendment is formulated in a way whereby if someone is found to have a conflict of interest that was not declared, it can be addressed. It simply formalises the requirement of a member of the authority to declare a conflict. Putting a register in place would assist good practice because we have had bad experiences here. This is an extra safeguard and I am disappointed the Minister is not proceeding with it.

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