Michael Finneran (Roscommon-South Leitrim, Fianna Fail)

The working group's deliberations are available to the public and are on the website. It might be helpful if I were to explain to the House that once the legislation is enacted, there will be a public consultation period which will be announced by the Minister. Not until after that public consultation period will the regulations be written, with the three months kicking in from that stage. There will be ample opportunity for the public consultation process.

Once the regulations are in place, every establishment has three months to go to the local authority and register. After that, any of the issues raised here will be a matter between the establishment and the local authority. An improvement notice, as provided for in the legislation, must be issued and a timeframe has to be agreed with the establishment and the local authority. That could be related to planning permission or other matters. This will not be thrown on establishments the minute we are finished in both Houses of the Oireachtas.