I welcome these amendments, which negate our amendment No. 52.

I move amendment No. 52: In page 47, line 27, after "certificates" to insert ", baptismal certificates and records, vaccine records and death notifications". I withdraw the amendment on the basis of the Minister's amendment No. 51.

These amendments do not seem to be included in the list of amendments I have to hand. I know from what the Minister said just now and what he has said before that we will accept the amendments. However, I wish to note, from a procedural point of view, that we do not have a copy of the wording.

I welcome these amendments, which are good additions to the legislation. In fairness, many of the topics we discussed at pre-legislative scrutiny and on Committee Stage have been taken on board. That is really welcome.

I welcome this group of amendments. Everyone's concern in this regard was based on what happened in the aftermath of the publication of the report on the mother and baby homes. There was frustration and anger that there was no accountability in that instance. We wrote at least three times to invite representatives from the commission to appear before the Joint Committee on Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. They refused, so we thought this was an important provision to have in the legislation. T…

I commend Deputy Kerrane. I will focus on child poverty. The impact of food poverty on children is a major concern. This is not a new phenomenon. It is something we have had for years in this country. Even before the most recent increases in the cost of living, the Joint Committee on Children, Disability, Equality, Integration and Youth was examining child poverty. Guests presented to the committee on the increase in the use of food banks. There is an impact on children when they do not get access to the proper and…

Deputies Brendan Smith and Ó Cuív are sharing time.

I move amendment No. 1: In page 9, between lines 19 and 20, to insert the following: “(c) to represent the child’s interests in the proceedings to which the guardian ad litem has been appointed.”. I welcome the Bill. It is needed. We do need regulation in this area. All Members are aware of the very good work that guardians ad litem do and the service they provide for children in care. We definitely need some sort of rules or regulations attached to that, however. The Bill is very welcome. These are the only amendm…

I will respond to some of those points. Regarding amendment No. 1, I do not see what the difficulty or issue is with even the wording or language of that because it was passed and was allowed through in the legislation the last time around. In terms of any Attorney General's advice or anything, I assume it would have gone through all of that before the previous Dáil fell. My concern is: what if one gets a court that is not au fait with this? It is good, as the Minister said, that the family courts will be changed a…

I move amendment No. 2: In page 10, to delete lines 21 and 22 and substitute the following: "(8) The court may hear from the guardian ad litem in respect of any welfare matter concerning the child."

I thank my colleague, Deputy Cullinane, for bringing forward the motion. This is the conclusion of the debate. We know that there are very serious concerns. These are not just the concerns of those of us in the Opposition, but of a great many women throughout the country. Unfortunately, these concerns arise from the history of the State's treatment of women. We have had several discussions in this Chamber on many issues in respect of women but particularly in respect of women's health. Some of these issues are not …

The Deputy's time is up.

They will be circulated as the Minister goes on.

There seem to be a number of Deputies not present, so we will move on to the Minister of State, Deputy Browne.

I welcome the chance to speak in this debate. Everybody is very mindful of the situation facing people in Ukraine We are all thinking of those who are facing that situation today, including those who are fleeing and those who are trapped without the choice or chance to get out of the country. Like Deputy Ó Broin, I want to acknowledge the work that has been done to date, particularly by the Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth and his Department. As Chairman of the Joint Committee on C…

I welcome the opportunity to speak on this Bill. It is good legislation. The Minister outlined the ad hoc nature of the current system. The work that guardians ad litem do is an important service. Where it works well, it works really well. However, we must always look at situations where it may not work well or is a little ad hoc . I have a few questions that the Minister might answer in his response. I welcome the presumption of the appointment of a guardian ad litem . I see the point on the potential difficulty o…

We now move to Sinn Féin and Deputy Martin Kenny, who has ten minutes

That is the fastest promotion I have ever got.

I have tabled amendments Nos. 10 to 13, inclusive. We skipped ahead. It will be very brief. Are we coming back to those amendments?

That is fine. I saw amendments Nos. 10 to 13, inclusive, were grouped with other amendments.