Liam Twomey (Fine Gael)

The failure of the Government to challenge the High Court judgment amounts to an acceptance of Ms Justice Laffoy's ruling in the McCann case. If a similar case arises following the enactment of the legislation, it could go before the High Court and the McCann judgment will serve as the precedent.

The Minister of State referred to the possibility that a stake could be placed on goods. Goods do not equate to income. We still have not received a satisfactory answer from the Government on whether the Laffoy judgment could be used to bring down the legislation. Unless the Minister provides a clear-cut answer on this matter, we will have to ask him to refer the legislation to the Supreme Court for an opinion. If he fails to do so, the Laffoy judgment will be used in future cases and may bring down the legislation, as occurred with the 1940 Act.