Brendan Ryan (Labour)

The Minister deserves compliments. This is a good Bill which is dreadfully overdue. It takes political will and clout to get the job done. There is limited political kudos for either the Minister or the Opposition in dealing with a Bill such as this. It is not the stuff that persuades the colourful writers in the Sunday newspapers to talk about it. If they do, they will state we spent a lot of time talking about it and will think that funny too.

It was a worthwhile debate. I thank the Leader of the House for allocating extra time which enabled us to go take Committee Stage in a reasonably civilised fashion. I thank the Minister for her responsiveness to the various amendments tabled by this side of the House. It was a positive engagement, as it usually is when the Minister comes before the House.

I compliment the representatives of the pharmaceutical profession who have shown a capacity to respond to rapidly changing events, given that the Bill and the amendments to it were quickly produced. I also thank them for their maturity. There is a campaign which suggests that a lay majority on a regulatory body marks the end of civilisation as we know it. It does not. It is one way of winning over the public to the belief that a self-regulating profession is also accountable to it and that it is there to serve it, not the self-interest of the profession. I hope other bodies will begin to listen and learn that a lay majority does not pose a threat, but is a way of advancing the cause of a profession.

I compliment the Minister and I look forward to seeing the long list of amendments that Dáil Éireann will have to deal with because of the diligence of Seanad Éireann.