Thomas Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I heard colleagues say they would support the Minister because of that. One of them who spoke privately to me voted with the Minister; he said that it could change during the course of the debate. The Minister seems to have ruled that out entirely. I think I have spotted a significant gap. The Minister cannot say that assets are covered by shares - they are not. A limited company can sell its assets without selling its shares. The State could sell the assets of Irish Water without selling its shares. The State could sell the assets of Anglo Irish Bank, the loan books. The State could sell the shares in Bank of Ireland which it owns. It could sell the shares in Aer Lingus which it owns. It owns control of Aer Lingus but it cannot sell the assets but it can sell the assets in Anglo Irish Bank. By saying it only relates to shares in Irish Water, the Minister is leaving a significant gap in the legislation. I appeal to the Minister to look at this issue at the weekend, to realise this is a mistake and to come have and include it in the plebiscite provisions.