Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am concerned to hear the Minister talk about testing in the courts. If we are not only waiting for reports but waiting for testing in the courts, it would seem to me that we are looking at the long-fingering of this issue. I genuinely do not understand why it cannot be seen to be clearly in the interests of good business practice that we would introduce these changes and amendments.

Will the Minister clarify whether she will be ensuring there is a test? If the Department of Social Protection decides it does not wish to test section 599 in the courts, will we wait for a test to emerge at some time? Is that a block against us moving forward in this area? There is a concern. Clearly, if legislation is not working and has not been used, then that is a sign it is not effective. We need to look to strengthen it to ensure it becomes a tool which people can use. The idea of a wait-and-see approach, not just for a CLRG report but for a court case, is unacceptable.

Will the Minister consider delaying Report and Final Stages to accommodate her own changes to address this issue? We know how difficult it is to move legislation through these Houses. There is an opportunity for the Minister to delay Report Stage to get a report from the CLRG by the end of Easter and to come up with her own proposals in respect of this issue.