Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)

I accept the points the Deputy makes. It is interesting to note, for example, the contrast between the UK and Ireland in the retail sector. The British retail consortium has already established basic guidelines on responsible retailing of children's wear, which has been signed up to by major retailers including Tesco, Marks & Spencer, Debenhams and TK Maxx, all of which operate in the Irish market.

However, in Ireland there is neither a code of conduct for the retail of children's wear nor even basic guidelines similar to those prepared by the British Retail Consortium. This should be addressed. My Department has had some preliminary discussions with the National Consumer Agency but I expect it will be addressed in the new children's strategy. There will be a public consultation phase for that. We should be examining high level objectives and the type of actions we should take in this country, similar to what has already been undertaken in the UK and what is proposed in the Bailey report.

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