Joe Costello (Dublin Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

The two bodies are being merged. As the Minister has indicated, the Irish human rights and equality commission Bill is close to being brought to the Cabinet and published. The Minister is already in the process of establishing the Irish human rights and equality commission, and it will be set up by merging the two existing bodies, pending the introduction of the legislation.

With regard to consultation, the Supreme Court found that the existing legislation was constitutional, so arguments can be made on both sides. The Minister for Social Protection is working on the draft heads of a gender recognition Bill, which will also be fairly complex. The gender recognition advisory group report was published in July 2011 and it is expected that the heads of the Bill will be brought shortly to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Social Protection and Education.