Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I do not want to waste too much time. However, first, I have to totally endorse what Senator Mullen has said about the guillotining of the Bill. It is disgraceful that it is being shoehorned through in the manner that it is. What was the hurry? I will tell the House what the hurry was. Some eejit in Government Buildings said there would be a better chance of getting this through if we say it is going to be held on International Women's Day, 8 March. That is what happened. We got stuck with the ridiculous notion that this will help the Bill to go through and we will be seen to be “pro-woman” and doing something on International Women's Day if we select that day for the vote on a referendum. As I said yesterday, that is a gimmick but it is a crude little gimmick. It is not the way a Constitution should be changed. It is shameful that that stunt was allowed to become a backstop in terms of time for considering change to our Constitution.

The ludicrous thing is that the commission which is, by law, required to function in respect of referenda indicated to the Government that it needed this Bill to be passed this evening and to go to the President so the Minister, Deputy Darragh O'Brien, can fix 8 March as the date for the referenda to be held, and the commission can carry out its statutory duties to inform the public and do all the things it has to do as a matter of law. That is what this is all about. These are shabby, stupid, silly and idiotic tactics.

Like Senator Mullen, I would love to have had the opportunity to examine the issues that Senator Clonan has raised in far greater detail, rather than have this thing flung at us and this House convened as a kind of a gesture. The timetable that we have been given does not permit any amendment in this House. No matter what we did, it was always intended to just rush it through, to use the Whip and get it through.