Roderic O'Gorman (Dublin West, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

Dáil amendments Nos. 2 and 10 enable the commission to remain in existence beyond the submission of its final report. This is for the purpose of engaging with people who attended before the confidential committee in order to allow them to state their preference for anonymity where that is their wish. As such, the amendments are effectively consequential on amendment No. 9, which provides for this process of engagement. The amendments have the practical effect of separating the submission of the final report from the commission's dissolution in law. Crucially, this will allow the commission to remain in being until 28 February 2020. This will enable the commission to engage with those people who courageously contributed to the confidential committee process.I will empower those people to decide on whether their stories, as captured in the archive, are anonymous. The approach proposed will ensure this can be done without delaying the submission of the commission's final report. As Senators will be aware, that is due on 30 October and the commission has indicated it will be ready on that date. Accordingly, as I have stated previously, this is why the urgent passing of the legislation is needed. It is my sense that we need to ensure that the commission can conclude and submit its final report at that stage to begin the process whereby it can be fully published.

The amendments have been brought forward following the debate in this Chamber and I hope they are seen as an acknowledgment by me of having listened to the issues flagged here. I accept there has been a heated debate on the issue in regard to the very strong desire of some people to have their names clearly associated with what they said, versus the desire of others for whom it had taken a great deal to go before the confidential committee and who never wanted any permanent record of their names with their contributions. I believe we have struck a fair balance in what is being proposed and by giving the commission additional time, following the submission of its report, to contact people who appeared before the confidential committee.