Barry Ward (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

In the first instance, I would not ascribe for a moment motives of obstruction or delay to Senator Ó Donnghaile. It is a perfectly reasonable amendment and has its place, but I do not believe that place is in this legislation.

In his contribution on Second Stage, Senator Mullen referred to the provisions in section 7, which insert section 11B into the 1962 Act and refer to circumstances "resulting from a pandemic, catastrophic event or other occurrence leading to mass fatalities". He lamented the idea that such circumstances might be foreseeable. We all know that they are not, just as the extent to which the Covid crisis has affected the system was not foreseeable. What the Bill tries to do - I do not just mean in respect of the measures on coroners, but the entire Bill - is put in place contingencies to allow the State to deal with these unforeseeable circumstances as, when and if they arise.

I am not afraid of sunset clauses. They are a very good idea as a general rule, but the difficulty is that I cannot envisage a scenario where we would want to undo these provisions. They are contingencies for an unforeseeable eventuality. That is why the amendment does not have a place in this legislation. The provisions being proposed in the Bill are contingencies that are necessary and they must remain. We cannot include them if, in a couple of months' time, we might decide that such circumstances are unlikely to occur, given that we do not know. They are protections for all of us.