Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Deputy Healy for putting forward the amendment. It would effectively reduce the Minister's current obligations to the Oireachtas. Section 12(2) of the FEMPI Act 2013 which, in turn, replaced subsection 13 of the FEMPI Act 2009, obliges the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to carry out an annual review of the operation, effectiveness and impact of the FEMPI Acts.

In light of the, the Minister must decide whether the Acts are still required and make any recommendations which might be appropriate. This review must be made before the Houses of the Oireachtas before 30 June each year. When dealing with such strong emergency legislation, it is entirely appropriate that it is subjected to a regular annual review. This was never intended to be normal legislation. While it exists, it should be subjected to extraordinary annual review. I also believe that in the interest of the checks and balances required in a parliamentary democracy, the report should be submitted to the Oireachtas for Deputies to scrutinise. In this regard, we have serious engagement with Deputies on the issues in debates occasioned by the annual review.

The process of the annual review and, in particular, the detailed examination of the continued necessity of FEMPI legislation by civil servants and my Oireachtas colleague has informed my thinking on the complete dismantling of the FEMPI legislative architecture which the Bill aims to achieve. On that basis, I cannot accept the amendment.

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