Victor Boyhan (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I will comment on today's Order of Business. No. 1 is a motion on the Seanad select committee. I circulated to every Member of this House press coverage from the wonderful RTÉ and its news service, which is an amazing service, and commentary attributed to the Minister of State, Deputy Peter Burke, regarding teething problems - I do not want a list of any teething problems - and talking about statutory instruments which transpose EU legislation into Irish law rather than the final version. This is somewhat at odds with the terms of reference we accepted in this House. I note from the Seanad debates that on Wednesday, 7 December 2022, our then Leader, Senator Regina Doherty, proposed the terms of reference and the motion. It stated "the Committee shall have the power to receive a list of all Directives requiring transposition under section 3 of the European Communities Act 1972", and it goes on to set out ten items. I suggest we redistribute this to the Seanad because we need to be reminded of it.

Today's motion relates to travel and I have no difficulty with supporting people in doing their work. However, I want to be sure of what we are signing up to because I am not sending people, or incurring public expense sending people, to some sort of charade or Mickey Mouse committee. Either the committee will adhere to its terms of reference or it will not. We need clarity on that. I wish the committee well at its first meeting today but let us be clear about what we have signed up to. Let us be clear about what we approve.

On Senator Mullen's issue on the guillotining of legislation, the Leader has it within her power to accept his amendment. I do not like the idea of guillotining legislation. We have plenty of time. This House has another two weeks to sit and we can fit additional time in. Let us not go down the road of guillotining legislation as it is a bad road.

I would like to mention Andrew and Max, the students of St. Michael's College who died tragically on Ios. I know the beautiful island of Ios because I lived there. Of all the islands, it is a most amazing place. Our thoughts have to be with their families. What a tragedy it is that they went there with their friends, with youth on their side and with ambition and determination to have a bit of fun, to find they are now coming back from the beautiful island of Ios. It was a special time for them. Our thoughts and our prayers are with their families and their extended school family, which is St. Michael's College.