Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

The Minister wrote to the Whips on 2 February last to explain the various issues that are being considered, including the scope of the Bill, the voting rights and the annual service charges. He gave the Whips that information because this issue has been arising regularly. He assured everyone that work on the development of the necessary amendments is proceeding with the Office of the Attorney General and the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel. We are anxious to bring this matter to finality as quickly as we can. There are complex issues involved. If it were a simple and easy matter, it would have been done by now. I acknowledge and accept that this matter has been ongoing for some time. We are trying to resolve the issues in a sensible way that will work for everybody and get the job done. The Minister wrote to the Whips yesterday to update them on the points I have made. The Whips have the detail of the letter.

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