Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

No, I am speaking to amendments Nos. 1 and 2 which have been ruled out of order. I am speaking to the section they were intended to amend. This issue is not simply about an amount that goes in and I am certainly not simply talking about the amount that comes out. Rather, it relates to the processes for managing that. All of those processes are dealt with in the Bill. The Bill does not just stipulate the agreement that Ireland makes, it also contains a description of the fund, details on how the beneficiaries are allocated and how that operates, as well as the platform rules and dealing with the establishment the contributors' committee. All those matters form part of the Bill and, as such, part of our decision.

Many Bills relating to financial and policy decisions about our collective recovery will come before the House and it is very important that Senators be able to engage on the technical details of such legislation. It is not simply a matter of whether we want money for businesses. That is not the question. The question relates to how the recovery is undertaken, how it is accounted for and how the decisions are made. Through my amendments, I was simply trying to address the question of how decisions would be made within the committee established under the platform fund, which is incompatible with the mechanisms set out in the fund description. That said, I will address the matter further when dealing with the relevant amendment which still stands and relates to a later section.