Mary Henry (Independent)

I welcome the Bill and hope it has a speedy passage. The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland has an illustrious past and its present and future are even brighter. The work I have seen undertaken in the college, not just in the field of medical education but also in research over the last 30 years, has been quite splendid and I see it going from strength to strength. While it wants to change its charter so as to be in line with other colleges such as the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh, it will also want to be in line with colleges such as the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland down the road from it. Recently when some colleagues of mine from the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland asked me what this charter was about, I said I thought it was because the RCSI wanted to be line with their college, which provoked great laughter from them. I congratulate the RCSI on bringing this Bill forward and hope it passes through the House speedily.

It is interesting that this is the only way charters can be changed. Perhaps when we look again at reform of the Seanad, we might look at the way Private Bills are dealt with, a matter which has not been examined for a long time.