David Norris (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Section 46, which is quite short, should be withdrawn by the Government and reworked because it is a grammatical nonsense. It states:

In advising the President in relation to the appointment of a person to a judicial office the Government shall firstly consider for appointment those persons whose names have been recommended to the Minister or, in the case of section 44, the Government in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

Grammatically, there are two possible interpretations. First, it means that the Government shall first consider, in the case of section 44, the Government. What does that mean? It means absolutely nothing. It is a total nonsense. Alternatively, something is being left out. It should state that, in the case of section 44, the Government, in accordance with the provisions of this Act, shall do something. It is an utter muddle and means nothing. It is rendered redundant by the grammatical inaccuracy of the way in which it is expressed.