Seán Power (Kildare South, Fianna Fail)

I thank the Senators for their contributions. We can agree on one thing, that it is confusing.

As debated on Committee Stage, the proposed amendments have significant implications for an important general principle underlying the design of the regulatory system set out in the Bill. The Department has been advised by the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel that there is scope for only one primary title to be designated under section 4, and variants of that primary title will be prescribed under the procedure outlined in section 94(3). A resolution of the issue surrounding the protection of the title "physical therapist" is therefore not appropriate in the context of the primary legislation but would be dealt with by means of regulations made under section 94(3) in future.

As requested by the House on Committee Stage, the Department has met representatives of both the Irish Society of Chartered Physiotherapists and the Irish Association of Physical Therapists to encourage the two organisations to develop an agreed solution to the issue of protection of title that takes account of the complex legal, competition and public interest issues involved.

Additional information has been sought from the Irish Association of Physical Therapists on some of the statements made in the position paper that it submitted and that information is awaited. That will be useful in adding to our knowledge of the work and training of physical therapists. I wish to clarify a comment made on Committee Stage by my colleague, the Minister of State, Deputy Tim O'Malley, regarding the current employment of physical therapists. The Minister of State was referring to the employment of physical therapists in the wider health sector rather than by health boards; physical therapists are not employed by the Health Service Executive.

As I said, the provision of information by the Irish Association of Physical Therapists that the Department has requested will add to our knowledge and I reiterate that it will continue to seek an agreed resolution to a process of engagement and focused consultation in partnership with the professional bodies concerned. We have made our request for information from the Irish Association of Physical Therapists, but we have not yet received it. It is not clear what are the criteria for qualification as a physical therapist.