Paul Gavan (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief. I thank the Minister for his response and for again being very clear on the fact that we need to legislate and that we will do so. That is a very important measure and I want to acknowledge it. However, I am concerned. To be clear, my concern does not relate to the Minister. He has been very consistent in his messaging on this matter from day one. I am concerned that, as recently as last August, his Department was saying there was no need for this Bill. I am concerned because we are now four years on from the promise that safe access zones would be legislated for and yet Department officials are apparently saying more time is needed. I am concerned by the lack of timelines. I agree with the Minister's point about an all-party approach but I think that is what we have here. I could not be more positive about the contributions of my colleagues from the Government parties here today. We have the ability to do that here.

This is a good Bill. It has been drafted well. I accept that the Minister's officials have concerns. I suggest that, after today, we meet with his officials. Let us make sure that is done on an all-party basis because no one is trying to claim the crown in this regard. Let us work through those concerns as quickly as we can because my concern is that, in 12 months' time, Senator Clifford-Lee, Senator Conway or I might still be asking where the legislation is. Where are we going to be at that point? In the meantime, there are women going to appointments in Limerick today and being targeted by these anti-choice protestors. These women have waited too long. Collectively, we need to do better. We can absolutely deal with the questions the Minister has raised. He made a point about registered premises. We can have that conversation. We are restricting it more here but we can look at it again on Report Stage. We have time between Committee Stage and Report Stage to strengthen this Bill and to take on board concerns in order to deliver a Bill that almost everyone here knows is necessary. That is what we have to do today.

I am not going to say more than that but I will briefly refer to those first three amendments because it is important to do so. They are very simple. They simply acknowledge the fact that we need to tighten up our definition of trade unions to recognise an "authorised trade union" as one "which holds a negotiation licence under the Trade Union Acts 1941 to 1990". These three amendments, Nos. 1, 3 and 10, deal with that. They are proposed under the advice of our colleagues in the trade union who just want to make sure that spurious groups do not present themselves as trade unions, which we know is entirely possible. I hope we can deal with these amendments swiftly. Let us do the business we are here to do today and then work constructively together. Let us start that work as soon as this committee hearing is over.