Joan Collins (Dublin South Central, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome those in the Visitors Gallery. On 1 December 2016, when the Bill came before the Dáil, there was great hope among thousands of people that we were going to see change and people would have proper access to medicinal cannabis. People were crying out for it. That expectation has risen in the recent period. When Vera Twomey marched from Cork to the Dáil gates, I remember the support she had all along the way. That reflected not just those who needed medicinal cannabis for medical purposes but the support for access for her daughter to CBD.

While there was a lot of technical detail at the committee that I would not be au faitwith, I wish to make one point. Professor Barnes, who is an eminent expert, was not invited to the committee. The IMO was not invited to the committee and it has passed a motion stating that it should not be just consultants who are able to dispense medicinal cannabis.

I am absolutely opposed to anybody trying to kill this Bill but I am also opposed to people trying to use it against others in here when people want to work together to try to make sure it happens and that people see change. I support Deputy Kenny's motion that this goes on to Committee Stage but we should be working together to make sure it happens, not for me or for anybody in Sinn Féin, Fianna Fáil or Solidarity-People Before Profit, but because we represent people out there who need this Bill to go through. I appeal to everybody to start working together on this. There has been a change.

I was going to read from an email that I received, but I am sure that all of us have received many emails about people going through a dire situation with chronic pain and so on, so I will leave it at that. I support Deputy Gino Kenny's Bill.

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