Tom Kitt (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)

Since Second Stage, we did not just add to the number of Acts, we also made some changes to the original list. We are trying to mop up but we are conscious that there is ongoing work on intoxicating liquor, land and employment rights legislation and we must be careful not to interfere with such legislation because of that very point. Our staff carefully examine each statute and if it is spent in every sense, it will go but if there is any doubt, it stays.

There is much more work to do. We are only starting the process and it is important and exciting. There is criticism of over-regulation and complexity in terms of our membership of the European Union but we are seeking more efficiency in this area. This is part of the bigger picture and we will achieve our goal by getting rid of this obsolete legislation.

It will not be long before someone comes back to the House to undertake further work. A. G. Donaldson did tremendous work in his 1956 thesis on the pre-1800 legislation entitled, "The Application of British Statute to Ireland" and the staff involved in this drew from it.

We do not prepare or publish revised statutes and there are no plans to do so. The intention is to focus on the pre-1922 legislation, repeal spent and obsolete legislation and eventually repeal, re-enact and modernise, where necessary, the remaining relevant legislation so the full corpus of Irish law would date from post-1922. The ultimate objective is the repeal of all pre-1922 legislation so there will be no need to revise the body of law.

The identification of legislation suitable for appeal has been a difficult task. The repeal and re-enactment of existing pre-1922 legislation is a formidable undertaking. It is not available electronically and we should be conscious that we do not lose the tremendous work that was done before the electronic age. It shows how much easier it is now to consolidate or restate legislation. I referred to Mr. A. G. Donaldson's work, which is interesting in its presentation because of the typing errors it includes.

I was asked how many pre-1922 Acts exist. The precise number is not yet known but the determination of what is in force or applies to Ireland has commenced and we may have those numbers later this year. The determination of the number of Acts is part of the master list project. At present up to 1,000 Acts still apply to Ireland that have not been repealed. The master list project entails a detailed examination of approximately 25,000 Acts to determine which of them are still on the Statute Book.

An assessment is also taking place regarding the possibility of publishing a second revision Bill which will depart from the normal statute law revision mechanism of repeal, which is essentially negative. The new Bill will positively list all legislation remaining in force. The master list will be viewed from a positive perspective rather than a mopping up operation such as this Bill. This will give clarity to citizens and legal professionals as to what pre-1922 legislation remains in force.

Projects to assess pre-1922 local, personal and private Acts and pre-1922 secondary legislation will be devised after the completion of the study of general and public statutes. Other efforts, such as consolidation, restatement and codification, are continuing in respect of post-1922 legislation. My office and the Attorney General's office are aware that there may always be criticisms of the numbers of consolidations or restatements and the lack of widespread codification. I assure Senators that efforts are being made on a Department-by-Department basis, as the impetus for consolidation traditionally emanates from Departments. However, we all know the all-consuming demands made by the legislative programme on a day-to-day basis.

In an ideal world, it would be beneficial to have codification of relevant laws. We are working towards this ideal. The work programme, already outlined, is a necessary precursor for plans for the future. However, we must focus on the positive and acknowledge that the transparency and accessibility of the Statue Book will be improved with progress such as this revision Bill. This is the beginning of an interesting exercise. It has provoked a good debate in the House. While I would like to see this work continue, there is also the issue of available resources. Departments have their priorities and must manage various crises that emerge. However, there must be a steady work level in this area and I will do my utmost to ensure this work continues.