Ivana Bacik (Independent)

I thank Senator Mooney for his kind comments. I did try to ensure people were kept up to speed by e-mailing all colleagues a briefing on the amendments and the rationale behind them, and I am grateful to all colleagues on both sides of the House that the amended Bill has passed unanimously. The aim with which we were all in agreement - that the Humanist Association of Ireland be included in the Register of Solemnisers - can now be fulfilled by this legislation. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy McGinley, for coming to the debate, and, in particular, the Minister for Social Protection, Deputy Burton, who has been hugely supportive of this Bill. I also thank the Registrar General, the officials and advisers in the Minister's office, and the Bills Office, as well as colleagues in the Labour Party group, who sponsored this originally, and on both sides of the House.

This is a good day for the Seanad. This is a Private Members' Bill from the Seanad that has been accepted by the Government and will now proceed to the Dáil, sponsored by the Minister, Deputy Burton, and passed - very soon, I hope - as a Government Bill. To be personal for a moment, I have attended many humanist wedding ceremonies, which of course had non-legal status until now, and I very much look forward to attending my first legally binding humanist wedding ceremony. There was some reference during the full and considered debate to marriage break-up, but this relates to a very happy occasion, the celebration of marriage.

This Bill seeks to ensure that those who wish to have their marriage celebrated by a member of the Humanist Association of Ireland or a philosophical non-confessional body can now do so in a legal way. It is an inclusive Bill and represents a small but significant step towards greater inclusiveness in Irish society. It will greatly improve the quality of life for those who wish to have humanist wedding ceremonies and it will ensure our laws are somewhat more reflective of our pluralist and diverse society.

I thank the members of the Humanist Association of Ireland for their forbearance with the difficult legislative process, although I must point out that this Bill was relatively quick to pass through the Seanad. I hope it will pass through the Dáil even more quickly.