Paul Bradford (Fine Gael)

I, too, welcome the Minister, Deputy Shatter, to the House and I welcome the legislation he has brought before the Seanad. The Bill brings a wide array of changes, many of which could have been the subject of separate legislation. Perhaps Deputy Shatter is a Minister in a hurry and wants to make quick progress. I look forward to co-operating with him to ensure the passage of the Bill before the summer recess.

I will commence with a word or two of support for what the previous speaker said about the bankruptcy law. In his proposed changes the Minister is taking a major step forward, but we must ask if we can go a little further. Over the past 12 or 18 months in the House I have said many times that every piece of legislation we introduce, no matter what the sponsoring Department, must be approached from the perspective of job creation and employment. With regard to every Bill, we must ask ourselves whether it produces or costs jobs. One might say a justice Bill should not have to face that test. However, the Minister is introducing changes to the bankruptcy law and this will be good for business.

We have a bankruptcy regime that writes off people's future. We must contrast it with the situation across Europe, but particularly in the United States where businesses fail and business people lose everything, as happens in Ireland, but are allowed to start again. In Ireland, the closure of a business is often seen as a mark of total and abject failure, whereas in other countries it is seen as a mistake from which people can learn, start again and come back and create jobs. What the Minister is doing with regard to bankruptcy legislation and the loosening of regulation sends out a much needed statement that while people can fail in business, it is not the ultimate mortal sin. There is a possibility of restarting and getting back to work and creating work. The Minister's proposals must be welcomed. I am sure we will tease out what Senator O'Donovan said about the possibility of even further improvement when we debate the Bill on Committee Stage. The measure sends a strong signal to business people from the House and the Government that it is not case of once down and you are out, and that there is a possibility of starting again.

I was pleased to see the proposed changes regarding the Taxing Master and that the post will now be open to barristers and accountants as well as solicitors. I appreciate what the Minister said about the recommendations that came before him. However, I question the proposal to reduce the age of retirement from 70 to 65. This is a subject we have debated in the Seanad, from a social welfare, pensions and ageism perspective, over recent weeks. Other Ministers have made bold statements, with which I agree, that 65 is no longer old. Could the Minister look again at the assumption that a person must retire once he or she reaches the age of 65? In all legislation we must try to be more flexible in this regard. We are told that 65 is the new 45. Most of our presidential candidates would believe that 70 is the new 50. The Minister might comment on that.

I welcome the proposal regarding the Family Law (Maintenance of Spouses and Children) Acts and their new obligations and provisions. It is sad that so many maintenance orders must be taken out. Deputy Shatter has an obligation as Minister and Senators have an obligation as legislators to ensure that where maintenance orders are put in place by the courts, they are fulfilled to the maximum possible degree. The Minister's proposals are welcome in that regard.

Senator O'Donovan referred to the right of way issue. Rights of way and rural Ireland go hand in hand. They have been the subject of songs, plays, stories, films----