End of Dáil term - Rushing bills is an abuse of power

The current parliamentary term ends today with the usual rush of legislation. This is a deliberate ploy to ram through controversial legislation.

Last month deputies went home early because there was not enough legislation for them to debate. Last week they rushed through seven new bills in four days. Today they are ramming through three bills.

The backlog in legislation was allowed to develop and the bills are now being rushed through to avoid embarrassment by the opposition. The guillotine is used to limit debating time, but the process is being abused to a ridiculous degree.