Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I must say that these amendments are deeply disappointing. This is legislation of great importance, as we made clear on Second and Committee Stages. There was a very collegial nature in the committee's dealing with this Bill, with strong cross-party consensus to ensure the legislation on the modernisation of our electoral system and our electoral register, and the creation of an electoral commission, was something we all wanted to do. We have collectively produced a very good Bill.

The amendments the Minister brought forward on Committee Stage with regard to party financing were directly related to the electoral reform legislation because they were about ensuring the integrity of our electoral system was not in any way undermined or jeopardised by party financing. This amendment has nothing to do with any of that. I am genuinely surprised that the Green Party is allowing this set of amendments to be inserted at this point.

The purpose of these amendments is very clear. They will allow Fianna Fáil to do something that it did once last year and got away with, and tried to do a second time but did not get away with because it was in breach of the law. We know very clearly that Fianna Fáil sought to apply to the High Court for a lottery licence on charitable donation grounds. A legal objection was raised and a legal threat was issued, and that lottery was cancelled and the money was refunded. This set of amendments is attempting to retrospectively legalise something that is currently not permissible. It runs completely contrary to the spirit of all of our discussions with respect to this Bill but also to the content of the Bill itself.

I have said to the Minister of State on many occasions that I have an enormous amount of respect for him. We have worked very well on a range of issues. It seems that when the Minister of State's line Minister is doing something that is politically controversial or unpopular, or when there are Private Members' Bills from our party, from the Social Democrats or from the Labour Party that are unpopular for the Government and to which it is opposed, unfortunately the Minister of State is sent in to defend the Bill. I am sure Deputy McAuliffe will defend the line Minister's honour.

This measure is unacceptable. It is not what the Bill is for. It is unacceptable that this has been brought in by way of a motion for non-consequential amendments without debate, where we will only have a limited time for discussion. My colleagues and other Deputies will have other questions, but I ask the Minister of State to tell the House who asked for this. It was not discussed or debated at any of the multiple sessions of pre-legislative scrutiny we held. Who requested this? Why is this here? What has this got to do with modernising electoral reform? I cannot see on the face of everything in front of us that this has anything to do with anything other than allowing Fianna Fáil to do things which it tried to do illegally last year, but did not get away with. It is now trying to change the law to suit itself in order to get away with it into the future. That is entirely unacceptable.

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