Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin Bay North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I will take the Minister at his word. We have to accept the world in which we live and the very damaging effects of the act to which this amendment relates. I know the Department is always concerned with having too much law and believes that there is enough existing law to do the business that courts have to do but I do not think you can have too much law in this area. As I said earlier, we are not really dancing on the head of a pin here. We cannot have a situation where spiking is shoved in under poisoning legislation which, by reason of its very terminology, feels a bit archaic. I am happy to withdraw the amendment but I will take up the Minister's offer of his further engagement with his Department. I get the sense from the script the Department has provided to the Minister that, while there is not outright opposition to what we are suggesting, there may be a little bit of nervousness as to its effects. With the co-operation of the Minister, we will go down the avenues Deputy Sherlock has suggested, such as a Private Member's Bill or a Bill going through the Seanad, in order to pursue this matter.

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