John Dardis (Progressive Democrats)

He did not say what he liked. We all know the Minister has always been amenable to come into the House and staying in it to a degree that is highly unusual for a Cabinet Minister when dealing with legislation and going through it in great detail. I am sure he will do the same in respect of this matter. He is to make a statement in the Dáil and we should await what emerges from that statement.

The burden of proof is not the same in this context, or in many other cases within these Houses, as it is in a court of law. We can all think of cases where senior Ministers lost their jobs and were out of Cabinet on the basis of allegations made against them that were never subsequently proven to be true. Parliamentary privilege is at the heart of our democracy and is something that should be protected and used sparingly. In that context, the Minister did exactly the right thing.