Alex White (Labour)

It is necessary to remind the Minister of State of precisely what he said on Committee Stage:

I am inclined to accept the first part of that amendment, which states that "Regard shall be had to the views of the child, having regard to the child's age and understanding, prior to taking steps under this section". I think it is worth inserting that in the Bill. I will therefore accept that proposal, but I would like to examine the phraseology, as well as detaching it from the second part of the amendment, which I tried to refer to in my original comments.

That is the statement the Minister of State made after a long, useful and productive debate on the issue. There may be an overarching provision elsewhere which is not quite in the same terms, but I cannot find it in front of me, although I heard the Minister of State read it out. It includes such phrases as "as far as practicable", "due consideration" and so forth. We can always accept the modification of provisions in particular ways because provisions cannot be absolute, but from what the Minister of State read out, it seems the overarching provision, as he called it, is not so robust. Senator Cannon mentioned the importance of taking into account the views of the child in the context of this part of the Bill. It is a pity the view the Minister of State expressed on the last occasion has not been followed through. It makes it difficult for us to make progress with him.