Amendments Nos. 44, 45, 46 and 47 are related and should be taken together.
SECTION 40.
Chairperson
I move amendment No. 44:
In page 19, lines 15 to 18, to delete subsections (1) and (2).
Amendment agreed to.
I move amendment No. 45:
In page 19, subsection (3), line 21, to delete "and determined".
Amendment agreed to.
I move amendment No. 46:
In page 19, subsection (3), line 24, to delete "section 14 (1) (a)" and substitute "section 15 (1) (a)".
Amendment agreed to.
I move amendment No. 47:
In page 19, lines 25 to 34, to delete subsections (4) and (5).
Amendment agreed to.
Section 40, as amended, agreed to.
NEW SECTION.
I move amendment No. 48:
In page 19, before section 41, to insert the following new section:
"41.—(1) Collusion between the spouses in connection with an application for a judicial separation or, subject to subsection (2) of this section, any conduct (including condonation or recrimination) on the part of the applicant shall not be a bar to the grant of a decree of judicial separation.
(2) Where an application for a decree of judicial separation is made on the ground of adultery and the respondent proves that the adultery was committed with the connivance of the applicant the court may refuse the application.".
Amendment agreed to.
Section 41 deleted.
Sections 42 and 43 agreed to.
Title agreed to.
Chairperson
I propose that the report of the Special Committee be as follows:
"The Special Committee has considered the Bill and has made amendments thereto. The Bill, as amended, is reported to the Dáil."
Agreed.
I would like to thank Deputy Shatter, the Minister for Justice and the various party spokespersons for their co-operation in dealing so expeditiously with this matter. I thank in particular Deputy Shatter and the Minister for the work they have done over the past few months in relation to getting a consensus on the amendments put before us today. I would like to thank also Deputy Colley and Deputy Taylor for their input and for the amendments they presented here today. I should like to thank also Mr. Dick Caffrey and his staff for the work they have done and for the assistance they have given us at all times but in particular in relation to this meeting which has been postponed and delayed on so many occasions. I thank all the members for their co-operation in making it easy to Chair this particular committee. Go raibh maith agat.
May I thank you for your help throughout this period and for chairing this meeting today. I thank all the members of this committee for their help and assistance and indeed Deputy Taylor and Deputy Colley for their amendments which gave us an opportunity to tease out aspects of the Bill which required to be teased out. I should like also to pay particular tribute to the staff of the committee who in recent days have been put under great pressure by us all to get the amendments out and get them distributed. At all times they have been most helpful and their guidance has been very much appreciated. I would like to thank too, the officials of the Department of Justice who have been involved in this process.
Chairperson, I would like to say thanks to you, to the committee staff, to my officials and to the members and everybody involved in getting this resolved. It has been a fairly long drawn out debate but I think we have something well worth while on the way now to becoming a statute. I hope that Report Stage in the House will take place in a matter of days and for my part I would like the Bill to go to the Seanad whenever that House is ready for it. I am confident that the Seanad will welcome what we have produced. I will be recommending the measure to the Seanad. One can never anticipate what happens in that House but the Senators are very reasonable people and I am sure they will give a good welcome to what we have finished up with here today.
The Committee adjourned at 2.25 p.m.