David Cullinane (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I have been critical of the Minister and the Government’s approach to Irish Water from the Water Services (No. 1) Bill to this one. However, the Minister is genuine in his attention to this issue. He has gone some way to meet our concerns. I regret the fact that it was not done sooner and we could have been in a different position today. The Minister has said he will consider some forum to consider a constitutional amendment and make a recommendation to Government as to whether it should be done. The difficulty is if we pass this Bill by Monday but the Minister has not come back with anything solid. If he came back with something solid on Report Stage on Monday, he would have genuinely listened to Seanad Éireann and met us halfway. He would give expression to what he has said and it would give expression to the sincerity of what he has said. Is it possible for him to come back with a government amendment for Report Stage on Monday? If he did, I would see that as a huge step forward and to be commended.