Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail)

I accept what the Minister has said. Obviously the 66 citizens will be in the majority but in practical terms some may have a good deal of experience at debating by being involved in other organisations but many may not. The random selection will include people who would not normally be involved in public debating, whereas Oireachtas members, whose job it is to articulate and argue and debate and have more experience, tend to have greater influence. Given the efforts by many of the political parties to go down the liberal route I am concerned that could distort the outcome of some of the deliberations. Therefore, there is a strong argument to be made for random selection of Oireachtas Members on a party proportional basis as Senator Paul Coghlan pointed out. I am not seeking to change the representational order of the House and if there is only one viewpoint from Members it may have a disproportionate effect on influencing the outcome. That is my concern. The exercise is good if we can maintain the integrity of the system. If we looked to NGOs and various organisations rather than a random selection, obviously the outcome would be a reflection of their viewpoint, whereas what we are seeking is a random sample which should reflect public opinion as a whole.