Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Taoiseach for his response. The Taoiseach will be aware, because we have spoken about this privately on many occasions, that I am quite passionate about Whip reform. I welcome the opportunity to have this discussion in public. It serves politics that we get to have more discussions like this in public.

I do not necessarily agree with the idea of a Whip for conscience votes. I see it more as a principle of a Parliament that is able to hold the Government to account and able to order its own affairs. I believe we should have a non-Whip vote on the Order of Business in regard to the taking of legislation and the amount of time allocated in that regard. However, I take the Taoiseach's point that stability is essential. The programme currently being implemented by Government is based on stability for the economy and stability politically for the country. People want this, particularly given the chaos that befell the country prior to the election of this Government. I believe we can maintain that stability and still loosen the Whip in respect of certain issues on Committee Stage. I believe it is possible to strike a balance between the two.

I welcome the Taoiseach's comments on the Heads of Bill on committee process. It is a good place to start. As stated by the Taoiseach, it is important we first introduce reform and then review it in the future to see how much further we can go.

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