Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

-----I find it perfectly in order for Deputy McDonald to express disgust, anger or revulsion at the actions of the committee, and the Deputy has some history in terms of dealing with the committee. However, it is entirely inappropriate for any Member to berate the Ceann Comhairle, whoever the Ceann Comhairle may be, because in this particular instance the Ceann Comhairle did nothing more than deal with a complaint that was made to him. It is another question as to whether the complaint should have been made in the first instance.

I will briefly raise three issues. With regard to the Bill proposed by Deputy Penrose to introduce a one-year bankruptcy period, the Taoiseach made some positive comments on the legislation yesterday. Will the Tánaiste give an assurance that the Bill will be enacted and operational before the end of the year?

On electroconvulsive therapy or ECT, we heard reports today that the Minister of State at the Department of Health, Deputy Kathleen Lynch, proposes to introduce legislation to deal with this issue before the end of this Dáil term. Are these reports correct and, if so, in the context of what legislation will ECT be addressed?

I refer the Tánaiste to the Constitutional Convention, an issue we have raised consistently at meetings of the Whips. In fairness to the Government Whip, he has always been willing to facilitate debate on the reports of the Constitutional Convention. Yesterday, a number of Members received invitations to an event with the title Irish Citizens Decide: A Review of the Convention on the Constitution. The people chosen to participate in the Constitutional Convention expressed considerable satisfaction with the convention and there was a lot of ruaille buaille on the part of the Government at its launch. The convention was supposed to facilitate a revolution in the political process, yet not one of the deadlines the Government set for itself in respect of dealing with the reports of the Constitutional Convention has been met. Is the Tánaiste embarrassed to learn that a seminar will be held on Friday to discuss the Constitutional Convention, given that four of its reports still have not been debated in the House?

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