On 1 December, my Department organised a conference on defamation in the context of the Report of the Legal Advisory Group on Defamation and the commitment in the programme for Government to reform the law on defamation. I was gratified to see present at that conference a wide range of representatives from the major sectors of the Irish media. It was a very successful conference and I will draw today on some of the elements of my presentation on that occasion. I pay tribute to Senator Jim Walsh who was the only Member of this House who managed to get along to it. There was a good robust discussion at that conference, to which he can testify, with a wide range of views expressed by participants. I expect that all the contributions received on the day, as well as others received prior to that day, will soon be available on my Department's website to further assist and inspire further contributions. I did not respond to the issues raised on the day of the conference because I was there in a listening mode and decided it would probably be wiser to let everything sink in a little more. This debate is appropriate given that I have provided for a consultation period up to the end of January 2004. As I was in listening mode on that occasion, I stress that I am also in listening mode here today.