Colm Burke (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We have no difficulty whatsoever in dealing with the banking crisis and the Minister has set out quite clear criteria to the banks on how to deal with mortgages in distress.

Senator Rónán Mullen raised the surrogacy issue. There is now a High Court judgment. In fairness, the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Shatter, set out in a memorandum guidelines on dealing with some aspects of surrogacy. People are travelling to places as far away as Ukraine, India and the United States for surrogacy. We need to deal with this. I agree with Senator Mullen that we should have a debate. It is not a matter we should allow to be kicked around for the next 20 years in the way others were left following the judgment in the X case.

No doubt the Minister will deal with this matter in a calculated way to ensure that we put in place the appropriate legislation to deal with this complex and difficult area. There is a High Court judgment. Let us have a debate and look at putting in place the proper structure of legislation to deal with this issue. I ask that the Leader ask the Minister to come to the House for that debate on this area at the earliest possible date.