The legislation was introduced in 1999 and was piloted through both Houses by the former Minister responsible, Deputy de Valera. She was praised by many people who were enthusiastic about the Bill, yet there was a considerable delay. The former Minister gave a commitment that the timeframe for consultation would be two months. An amendment was tabled by Deputy O'Shea to the effect that a time constraint of six months should be in place for the implementation of this measure. The Minister said she did not want to be put in a straitjacket and wanted to be flexible, but she gave a commitment of two months.