Pat Leahy explains the implications of fast-tracking Bills through the Oireachtas

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The Government coalition is rushing legislation through the Dáil in preparation for a general election in November. But what about the bills that are not passed? Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill / The Irish Times
The Government coalition is rushing legislation through the Dáil in preparation for a general election in November. But what about the bills that are not passed? Photograph: Dara Mac Dónaill / The Irish Times

Last week, the Government rushed through a number of priority Bills in a scramble to clear the decks before the next general election.

Five Bills were considered and passed, all in under six hours, a process that normally takes weeks.

But, are there any risks involved in rushing these Bills so quickly through the Dáil? And, what happens to the pieces of legislation, such as the Defamation or Mental Health Bills, which are not expected to be passed before the election?

Meanwhile, opposition TDs are continuing to call for the Occupied Territories Bill, which would ban trade between Ireland and Israel’s illegal settlements in Occupied Palestinian Territories, to be passed without delay. Can that happen before the end of November?

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Today, on In the News, how the Government is rushing to pass new laws before its term ends. Irish Times political editor Pat Leahy examines the implications of fast-tracking Bills through the Oireachtas.

Presented by Sorcha Pollak. Produced by Suzanne Brennan and Declan Conlon.

Sorcha Pollak

Sorcha Pollak

Sorcha Pollak is an Irish Times reporter specialising in immigration issues and cohost of the In the News podcast