Charles Flanagan (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)

While the Minister and the officials in the Department of Finance will be busy over Easter drafting legislation that will force the taxpayer to buy tracts of desert in Dubai, pubs in Britain and vacant building sites in Chicago, will the Tánaiste explain how the paralysis in the drafting of legislation has permeated all aspects of Government policy recently? I refer in particular to the legislative programme published on 26 January that lists six Bills to be published by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform in this session. Will the Tánaiste confirm when during this session the following Bills were published: No. 9 the Civil Partnership Bill; No. 10 the Covert Surveillance Bill; No. 11 the Criminal Justice (Forensic Sampling and Evidence) Bill; No. 12 the Criminal Justice (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill; No. 13 the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering) Bill, to transpose the third money laundering directive into national law - this is the last country in the EU to effect this transposition; No. 14 the Criminal Procedure Bill and No. 15 the Property Services (Regulatory) Bill? Will the Tánaiste confirm on this, the last day of yet another session, that the Government is paralysed not only in respect of the economy and financial matters but in the justice area where nothing is happening?

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