Dessie Ellis (Dublin North West, Sinn Fein)

I agree this review is long overdue. I read the document and found much of it to be very good, and I disagreed with other aspects. When will we be debating this in the Dáil? Legislative change will be required. There are items in regard to the nine-year rule that I believed we had put to bed. These must be all debated. The Joint Committee on the Environment, Transport, Culture and the Gaeltacht has not yet debated the document. This needs to be done so the Dáil can debate it. Then we can consider what legislation is required.

I ask that the rules on convictions not apply to those encompassed by the Good Friday Agreement. I mentioned this before but the Minister caught me off guard. Will the Minister of State indicate when this matter will be debated in the Dáil and by the committee?

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