Ivana Bacik (Independent)

I move amendment No. 1:

In page 5, between lines 27 and 28, to insert the following:

"(c) The references in this subsection to a designated centre shall include any other suitable place of treatment specified by the Minister for Health and Children.".

I welcome the Minister of State, Deputy John Moloney. I thank him for his continuing interest in these issues. We had a very good debate on Committee Stage. I have tried to change the amendments by taking account of the Committee Stage debate when submitting them and not simply returning with the same amendments on Report Stage. I note I am the only person with amendments at this point but Senator Quinn has supported amendment No. 5.

Amendment No. 1 is a proposed amendment to section 4 which refers to the designated centre. Once again, this relates to an amendment which was debated on Committee Stage and the Government at that point had an amendment which is now inserted in section 3. I am delighted the principle was accepted by the Minister of State on Committee Stage that other psychiatric centres could be designated other than the Central Mental Hospital. This is a very important principle. This amendment would add to that flexibility by allowing in this case the Minister for Health and Children to designate another suitable place of treatment. This amendment cites the Minister for Health and Children to take account of a point made by the Minister of State, Deputy Moloney, on Committee Stage when he suggested that if this were to be done, it should not be the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform who does the designating. I accept that section 3, as amended, meets some of the concerns we had about allowing designated centres other than the Central Mental Hospital, for example, local psychiatric hospitals, to be designated centres. This amendment would increase that flexibility.