Ned O'Sullivan (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

The Joint Committee on the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution is nearing the conclusion of its work and this day week it will submit its report and recommendations to Government for consideration. The committee has been very active and, in my opinion, every member of it has engaged fully with due diligence to the task in hand.

It will be up to the Government in the first instance to decide what to do with the report. The task of the committee was to examine the report of the Citizens' Assembly and, arising from that process, to make recommendations. There have been many allegations about the independence of the committee. There have also been strong suggestions of bias from the commencement of the process and particularly strong levels of criticism of the chairperson, our colleague, Senator Catherine Noone. I take this opportunity to reject outright suggestions of bias on the part of any member of the committee, particularly the chairperson. In my view, she has been outstanding in her application to the job in hand.

I ask that each Member of both Houses would study the committee's report over the Christmas and then make their input to Government with a view to a referendum being put before the people. It is important to remember that, at the end of the day, the people are sovereign. Whatever recommendations are made by a group, be that the Citizens' Assembly or the Oireachtas joint committee or by the Government, ultimately, the people will decide. I look forward to a dispassionate and objective debate on the main issues without confrontation or unnecessary unpleasantness. We all have our own principles, beliefs and consciences. I respect every member of the committee and I would expect nothing less than their respect for my opinions and the opinions of others.