Guardianship of Infants and Child Care (Amendment) Bill 2026: Committee and Remaining Stages
Seanad Éireann — 2026-06-30
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Jim O'Callaghan (FF), Dublin Bay South

I thank all the Senators for their contributions and support. It is unusual in this business of politics to go into any House and receive universal support for a piece of legislation. I thank all Senators for their support. As they know, I have made a couple of amendments and, therefore, the Bill must go back to the Dáil. That will happen on the week beginning 13 July. Hopefully, the legislation will pass all Stages of the Houses by 15 July. Obviously, it will then go the President to be signed.
I commend David, Veronica and Suzette French on their presence here, particularly David for his campaigning in respect of this. The first time I encountered David French was on a television programme around January 2024. It was before the Government was announced. There was a question about what would be done in the area of familicide and when tragic events like that happen. David was in the audience and said that this legislation had been a recommendation of the familicide report. He was the one who stated that it is, clearly, abusive of children for one guardian to kill the child's other guardian. The presenter turned and asked me whether I would bring in this legislation if I were to become Minister of justice, and I said I would. It was hard to do. Not everyone was fully supportive of it, but it is important legislation that we will have in place to provide a public law response in this regard.
I commend David and his family on their campaigning on this matter. I thank Senators for their support. We will keep the legislation under review and see how it progresses. It is an important public law response to a appalling and tragic crime that takes place, and for which there needs to be a public law response.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/seanad/2026-06-30/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-08-14T04:55:07+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-30