Legislation after Dunne judgment
Shane Ross asks about legislation reversing the consequences of the Dunne judgment; the Minister says the Bill’s heads have been approved and legislation is intended before the summer, followed by a full debate.
As a black Protestant, I would hate to be left out of welcoming the Pope and wishing him well. I welcome him on behalf of everyone on these benches also. Has the new Pope been invited to Ireland yet? Perhaps when the Minister is over in Rome on Tuesday, he will get the invitation in early.
On the issue of legislation, was the Secretary General of the Department of Finance correct last week when he said at the Committee of Public Accounts in response to questions I asked that the legislation to reverse the Dunne judgment was well advanced? As the Minister knows, repossessions cannot be initiated without this legislation. Therefore, it is up to the Minister to open the floodgates to these repossessions and allow them happen. Will the Minister assure us that the repossession legislation will come to the House in an orderly way and that it will be fully debated here? Will he assure us it will not be slipped through the House before the Easter recess?
Comment on this
I am sure the Pope will be very pleased that Deputy Ross has congratulated him. I notice there is an Old Testament type of rhetoric in the interventions of Deputy Ross here sometimes, with phrases such as "opening the floodgates".
Comment on this
On the legislation to remediate the lacuna arising from Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne's judgment, the heads of the Bill were passed by the Government last Tuesday. The responsibility for this is vested in the Minister for Justice and Equality and he intends to legislate before the summer if possible. There will be a full debate in the House on the Bill.