Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I am happy to convey my party's support for the Bill, albeit I express concern at the delay which has turned the passing of the legislation into a matter of urgency. Although it is not the most thrilling piece of legislation, it is important as it transposes into Irish legislation two articles of an EU directive on the legality of measuring instruments.

Metrology is the science of measurement and is one of the oldest sciences in the world, if not the oldest. Metrology is vital to science and to the measurement of temperature changes due to global warming, earthquakes and their aftermath and the pollutants in our air, water and soil. The legislation will ensure that inaccurate measuring instruments are prevented from reaching the market for sale in Ireland. The Metrology Act 1996 established a legal metrology service which provides customers with reassurance that measuring instruments used in everyday life are regulated and legally accurate. The legislation before the House will extend protection for consumers in this area. I have come to understand how important metrology is. For example, it protects tourists from inaccurate taximeters and it ensures families know with how much gas they have been supplied.

This short Bill is needed to transpose two articles of the directive which cannot be transposed through a statutory instrument. It will bring Ireland into line with European standards in this area. While the committee to which the Minister of State referred supported the progress of the Bill, its members felt there should in future be more time provided for pre-legislative scrutiny, regardless of how technical or uncontroversial a Bill is. I thank the Oireachtas Library and Research Service for its comprehensive digest on the Bill which, as always, made an obscure topic like legal metrology easy to understand.They really provide a great service here and should be recognised for it. The Bills Digest is a great resource to be able to lean on when it comes to being in opposition and the work of democracy in holding Governments to account. I was a justice spokesman in the last Oireachtas and would have been totally lost without the help of that service in dealing with the huge volume of justice legislation. The library and research staff provide a tremendous service and I want to formally recognise their hard work here today.

I welcome this Bill to the Upper House and look forward to its speedy passage.