Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

This comes to the nub of the legislation, which is about bankruptcy and the reduction in the term. Like Senator Barrett, I am not a legal person but I imagine our esteemed legal colleague, the Minister, will clarify the position in respect of the amendment, which proposes to delete lines 34 to 38 on page 120. Section 146(85D)(3) states: "An order made under subsection (1) shall not require a bankrupt to make payments for a period of more than 5 years, but nothing in subsection (2) shall prevent a bankruptcy payment order having effect after the bankrupt has been discharged from bankruptcy." In other words it seems as if the person in question is not bankrupt at all and that the unfortunate bankrupt may believe he will get out from under it after five years but in fact it could continue for a considerable period. This may be the thinking behind the amendment, which would discharge the bankrupt with immediate effect. In other words, it appears to be a proposal for a clean, definitive end to it. I would be grateful to hear the Minister's response.