Brendan Ryan (Labour)

I thank the Minister for the manner in which he has treated the House during the passage of this legislation through the Oireachtas. It is a welcome development that such a number of Bills, including this one, have commenced in this House. It is only fair to give credit to the Leader for his efforts in this regard.

The Minister accepted a number of amendments put forward by the Labour Party on Committee Stage and on Report Stage agreed to accept the spirit of a couple of other amendments and to look at the possibilities for amendment during the Bill's passage through the Dáil. True to his word, the Minister did that and has come back with amendments with which I am reasonably happy and will accept on behalf of the Labour Party. I believe they address our concerns and considerably improve the legislation. Working with the Minister on this Bill has been a positive experience for me and demonstrates the value of constructive opposition and that the Minister was willing to respond positively to bring about improvements in legislation.

I look forward to the implementation of the legislation and the realisation of the potential benefits to our citizens and our economy. I thank the Minister and his officials.