Malcolm Byrne (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I am happy, having listened to the Minister’s point. I want to speak directly to what is in the legislation and the proposed amendments. If we are thinking about the commission when it is up and running, I would certainly hope it would not regulate behind an Iron Curtain.If a sector wants to set up its own system to try to address some of the problems at an early stage, the commission should work quite closely with the sector to try to allow that to happen. It does not prevent, if that self-regulatory system fails or is in breach of codes, action being taken but if a sector is looking to regulate itself effectively to try to avoid having the full force of the commission coming down on it, it is worded reasonably well in the legislation as "may co-operate with". When the commission is up and running, I would like to see the relevant sectors talking to it and saying that they want to be in compliance with the legislation, the codes and the directives and asking what they need to do. For example, if it is an industry representative body, what does it need to tell its members? How can the body ensure there are appropriate arbitration mechanisms in place?

While I understand the proposals in the amendments - I am speaking specifically to the wording - it will not help. It should remain as it currently stands in the legislation.