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54 bills were passed into law in 2019 – Government Chief Whip

2019 marks a busy legislative year with legislative total amongst highest of last decade
New laws passed on key areas such as housing, Brexit, healthcare & climate action

Seán Kyne, Government Chief Whip, has confirmed that the 54 bills became law during 2019, one of the highest annual legislative totals of the past decade.

The Dáil has progressed a wide range of bills this year on areas impacting citizens across the country including issues such as housing, Brexit, healthcare, supports for families, insurance reform, climate action and the economy, among others.

Minster Kyne said:

This year the Government has led 54 bills through the Oireachtas which is the highest annual total under the current government and well above the annual average of 46 bills per year over the decade. This total is more significant given the time needed for the Brexit Act earlier this year.

The legislation enacted this year has been wide-ranging with bills from across government including on a number of key priorities and commitments. In housing, the Government has strengthened tenants’ rights, extended rent controls and regulated Approved Housing Bodies. In healthcare, the Government has enhanced governance and accountability in the health service by establishing a new HSE Board and by setting up the CervicalCheck Tribunal.

In relation to justice and equality, the Government passed laws to give effect to the Istanbul Convention on preventing and combating violence against women, extend the redress process to cover other institutions, increase the number of judges to ensure speedier access to justice, reform insurance through the establishment of the Judicial Council, and set up a new Citizens’ Assembly to advance gender equality.

During the year, the Government also led legislation to support families and households including targeted social protection supports, extending parental leave and introducing paid parental leave.

Finally, I would like to thank the staff of the Chief Whip’s Office, the Department of Taoiseach, the Office of Parliamentary Counsel and the Office of the Attorney General for their work over the Dáil term in shaping and progressing legislation which benefits citizens across our country.

Bills enacted in 2019

Number 1 of 2019: Local Government Act 2019

An Act to provide for the transfer of part of the administrative area of the council of the county of Cork to the administrative area of the council of the city of Cork; to provide for the holding of plebiscites by certain local authorities on the question as to whether or not the cathaoirligh of those local authorities should be elected to such positions by the electors of the administrative areas of those local authorities and the question as to whether or not certain functions of the chief executives of those local authorities should be transferred to those cathaoirligh; for those and other purposes to amend the Local Government Act 1991 , the Local Government Act 2001 , the Valuation Act 2001 , the Official Languages Act 2003 and certain other enactments; and to provide for matters connected therewith.


Number 2 of 2019: Hallmarking (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend and extend the law relating to the assaying and hallmarking of articles of precious metal; to make provision for the assaying and hallmarking in certain circumstances of articles of precious metal outside the State; and, for those purposes, to amend the Hallmarking Act 1981 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 3 of 2019: Personal Injuries Assessment Board (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend and extend the Personal Injuries Assessment Board Act 2003; and to provide for related matters.


Number 4 of 2019: Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Punishment of Incest Act 1908 and the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2017 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 5 of 2019: Data Sharing and Governance Act 2019

An Act to provide for the regulation of the sharing of information, including personal data, between public bodies; to provide for the regulation of the management of information by public bodies; to provide for the establishment of base registries; to provide for the collection of public service information; to establish the Data Governance Board; to amend the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 ; to amend the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 ; to amend the Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act 2011 ; to amend the National Shared Services Office Act 2017 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 6 of 2019: Criminal Law (Extraterritorial Jurisdiction) Act 2019

An Act to extend the criminal law of the State to certain conduct engaged in outside the State and in that regard to give effect to certain provisions of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence done at Istanbul on 11 May 2011; for that purpose to amend the Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Act 2008 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 7 of 2019: European Parliament Elections (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to give effect to European Council Decision (EU) 2018/937 of 28 June 20181 establishing the composition of the European Parliament and Council Decision (EU, Euratom) 2018/994 of 13 July 20182 amending the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage, annexed to Council Decision 76/787/ECSC, EEC, Euratom of 20 September 1976 and, for that purpose, to revise the European Parliament constituencies; to provide for the number of members to be elected for such constituencies; to amend the European Parliament Elections Act 1997; to amend the Electoral Act 1992; and to provide for related matters.


Number 8 of 2019: Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Consequential Provisions) Act 2019

An Act to make provision for certain matters consequent on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from membership of the European Union.


Number 9 of 2019: Sea-Fisheries (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend section 10 of the Sea-Fisheries and Maritime Jurisdiction Act 2006 and to provide for related matters.


Number 10 of 2019: Companies (Amendment) Act

An Act to amend section 343 of the Companies Act 2014; and to provide for related matters.


Number 11 of 2019: Parental Leave (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend and extend the Parental Leave Act 1998.

Number 12 of 2019: Aircraft Noise (Dublin Airport) Regulation Act 2019

An Act for the purposes of giving further effect to the Aircraft Noise Regulation in so far as it relates to Dublin Airport and to make additional provision for the regulation of aircraft noise at Dublin Airport; for those purposes, to amend the Planning and Development Act 2000 to cater for the situation where development at Dublin Airport may give rise to an aircraft noise problem; and to provide for related matters.


Number 13 of 2019: Civil Registration Act 2019

An Act to amend the Civil Registration Act 2004; to amend the Civil Registration (Amendment) Act 2014; to amend the Children and Family Relationships Act 2015; and to provide for related matters.


Number 14 of 2019: Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Residential Tenancies Acts 2004 to 2016; to provide for powers to carry out investigations of landlords and impose administrative sanctions; to provide for offences in relation to non-compliance with rent increase restrictions in rent pressure zones; to increase the notice periods to be provided in the case of termination of a tenancy by a landlord; to provide for annual registration by landlords of tenancies and to amend the registration process; to provide for mandatory publication of determination orders by the Residential Tenancies Board; to provide that the letting of a house or part thereof for any period not exceeding 14 days in a rent pressure zone is a material change in the use of the house or part and for that purpose to amend the Planning and Development Act 2000; and to provide for related matters.


Number 15 of 2019: Greyhound Racing Act 2019

An Act to amend and extend the Greyhound Industry Acts 1958 and 1993, the Welfare of Greyhounds Act 2011, the Animal Health and Welfare Act 2013; to change the name of Bord na gCon and to provide for related matters.


Number 16 of 2019: Health and Social Care Professionals (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 to provide for the recognition of certain professional qualifications as approved qualifications within the meaning of section 38 of that Act; and to provide for related matters.


Number 17 of 2019: Health Service Executive (Governance) Act 2019
An Act to amend the Health Act 2004 to provide that the Health Service Executive shall be governed by a board and not a directorate, to provide that the Executive shall have a chief executive officer accountable to that board and to provide for certain other amendments to that Act; to provide for the amendment of certain other enactments; and to provide for related matters.


Number 18 of 2019: National Surplus (Reserve Fund for Exceptional Contingencies) Act 2019

An Act to establish a fund to be known as the National Surplus (Exceptional Contingencies) Reserve Fund for the purpose of the assets and sums hereafter mentioned of the fund being available to be drawn upon only in defined circumstances, being circumstances that involve certain contingencies of an exceptional nature; to provide for the transfer of certain assets and sums to the fund; to provide for the management and control of the fund; to amend the National Treasury Management Agency (Amendment) Act 2014; and to provide for related matters.

Number 19 of 2019: Copyright and Other Intellectual Property Law Provisions Act 2019

An Act to amend the Copyright and Related Rights Act 2000 to take account of certain recommendations for amendments to that Act contained in the Report of the Copyright Review Committee entitled “Modernising Copyright” published by that Committee in October 2013 and also to take account of certain exceptions to copyright permitted by Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 20011on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society; to make certain other amendments to that Act, including amendments in relation to references in that Act to education and fines; to make consequential amendments to The Courts of Justice Act 1924, the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961, the Patents Act 1992, the Trade Marks Act 1996 and the Industrial Designs Act 2001; to make a certain amendment to the Patents Act 1992; to make amendments to the Patents Act 1992 and the Trade Marks Act 1996 in relation to references in those Acts to courtsand fines; and to provide for related matters.


Number 20 of 2019: Criminal Justice (Mutual Recognition of Probation Judgements and Decisions) Act 2019

An Act to give effect to Council Framework Decision 2008/947/JHA of 27 November 2008 on the application of the principle of mutual recognition to judgments and probation decisions with a view to the supervision of probation measures and alternative sanctions, as amended by Council Framework Decision 2009/299/JHA of 26 February 2009 amending Framework Decisions 2002/584/JHA, 2005/214/JHA, 2006/783/JHA, 2008/909/JHA and 2008/947/JHA, thereby enhancing the procedural rights of persons and fostering the application of the principle of mutual recognition to decisions rendered in the absence of the person concerned at the trial; and to provide for related matters.

Number 21 of 2019: Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Industrial Relations Act 1990 in order to provide for the application of certain provisions of the Industrial Relations Acts 1946 to 2015 to certain members of the Garda Síochána; and to provide for related matters.


Number 22 of 2019: Land and Conveyancing Law Reform (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act 2013 to provide for the procedure to be followed in certain legal proceedings to which section 2 of that Act applies; and to provide for related matters.


Number 23 of 2019: Civil Law (Presumption of Death) Act 2019

An Act to provide for the civil status of a missing person where the circumstances of his or her absence leads to a presumption of death; and to provide for related matters.


Number 24 of 2019: Local Government Rates and Other Matters Act 2019

An Act to revise the law relating to the collection of rates in relation to certain properties, to provide for the establishment and maintenance of a database of those properties in the State, to provide for the amendment and repeal of certain enactments; for purposes unconnected with the foregoing, to amend the Planning and Development Act 2000 and otherwise make provision in relation to certain regional spatial and economic strategies, and to amend the Residential Tenancies Act 2004 and the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) Act 2019 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 25 of 2019: Citizens’ Assemblies Act 2019

An Act to provide for the access and use of information contained in the register of electors established under the Electoral Act 1992 for the purpose of selecting citizens of Ireland to be members of certain citizens’ assemblies; and to provide for matters connected therewith.


Number 26 of 2019: Redress for Women Resident in Certain Institutions (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Redress for Women Resident in Certain Institutions Act 2015; to amend the Nursing Homes Support Scheme Act 2009; and to provide for related matters.

Number 27 of 2019: Criminal Justice (International Co-operation) Act 2019

An Act to provide for the taking of evidence in the State from a member of the Garda Síochána for the purposes of certain inquests and inquiries held in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; to permit the Garda Síochána to enter into agreements for co-operation with certain persons or bodies outside the State; to permit the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission to enter into agreements for co-operation with law enforcement agencies or certain other persons or bodies outside the State; and for those purposes and other purposes, to amend the Garda Síochána Act 2005 ; to amend the European Arrest Warrant Act 2003 ; to amend the Criminal Justice (Mutual Assistance) Act 2008 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 28 of 2019: Parole Act 2019

An Act to provide for the establishment of a body to be known as An Bord Parúil or, in the English language, the Parole Board; to provide for its functions; to amend certain enactments; and to provide for related matters.


Number 29 of 2019: Coroners (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Coroners Act 1962 and to provide for related matters.


Number 30 of 2019: Courts Act 2019

An Act to amend section 1A of the Courts (Establishment and Constitution) Act 1961 to increase the number of ordinary judges of the Court of Appeal to fifteen; to amend the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 ; to amend the Courts and Court Officers Act 1995 ; to amend the Legal Services Regulation Act 2015 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 31 of 2019: Cervicalcheck Tribunal Act 2019

An Act to provide for the implementation of the Report on an Alternative System for Dealing with Claims Arising from CervicalCheck, in respect of the hearing and determination, outside of the court process, of claims arising from acts or omissions arising from CervicalCheck and, for those purposes, to make provision for the establishment of a body, to be known in the Irish language, as An Binse um CervicalCheck or, in the English language, as the CervicalCheck Tribunal; to make provision for the Tribunal, with the consent of the parties concerned, to hear and determine a certain limited number of claims made to it outside of the court process; to provide that a determination of the Tribunal shall be subject to confirmation by the High Court and subject to a right of appeal to the High Court; to make provision, in the public interest of restoring trust in CervicalCheck, for the making available to certain persons of facilities for the purposes of documenting experiences, facilitating discussion and providing information to such persons in respect of CervicalCheck; and to provide for related matters.


Number 32 of 2019: Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) (Amendment) Act 2019

An Act to amend and extend the Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) Act 2012 ; for that purpose to make fresh provision concerning the means by which an award’s status, with reference to the National Framework of Qualifications, may be established and, to that end, to provide for the establishment of a category of awarding bodies, exclusive of the Qualifications and Quality Assurance Authority of Ireland or certain other persons, which shall be known as “listed awarding bodies”; to provide, as a condition precedent for provisions of that Act to be invoked by providers falling within a certain category (or intending such providers), for a requirement that criteria specified in regulations, to be made by the Minister for Education and Skills, must be met, including criteria for the purpose of affording a reasonable assurance to the foregoing Authority that a foregoing provider has the capacity and capability to provide programmes of education and training consistent with the requirements of that Act; to provide for the establishment of a fund which shall be known as “Protection of Enrolled Learners Fund”, into which an annual charge by certain providers must be paid and from which moneys may, in cases of default in delivery of certain programmes, be paid so to enable enrolled learners complete the programme concerned or so as to be used for certain other purposes; to make further provision regarding authorisation to use the international education mark; to add to the cases in which a provider may be authorised to describe itself as a “university” and, for that purpose, to amend the Universities Act 1997 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 33 of 2019: Judicial Council Act 2019

An Act to provide for the establishment of a body to be known as Comhairle na mBreithiúna or, in the English language, the Judicial Council; to provide for its functions and for related matters.


Number 34 of 2019: Social Welfare Act 2019

An Act to amend and extend the Social Welfare Acts; to amend the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997; and to provide for related matters.


Number 35 of 2019: Parent's Leave and Benefit Act 2019

An Act to entitle certain employees who are relevant parents in relation to a child to employment leave for the purposes of enabling them to provide, or assist in the provision of, care to the child; to entitle certain employees who are surviving parents in relation to a child to employment leave on the death of a relevant parent; to provide for the payment of parent’s benefit to certain persons and, for that purpose, to amend the Social Welfare Consolidation Act 2005 ; for those purposes to provide for the consequential amendment of certain other enactments; and to provide for related matters.


Number 36 of 2019: Health and Childcare Support (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2019

An Act to make provision, in the event of the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from membership of the European Union occurring without an agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union setting out the arrangements for such withdrawal, for certain matters consequent on such withdrawal and, in particular—

A. in the spirit of the State’s commitment to the British-Irish Agreement done at Belfast on the 10th day of April, 1998, and having regard to the State’s membership of the European Union, to make exceptional provision for the reimbursement by the Health Service Executive to eligible persons resident in Northern Ireland of certain medical expenses incurred in a Member State in respect of necessary medical treatment during their stay in that Member State, and

B. having regard to the Common Travel Area between the State and the United Kingdom, to make provision for eligibility of certain persons to apply for financial support under the Affordable Childcare Scheme, and for that purpose to amend the Childcare Support Act 2018,

And to provide for related matters.


Number 37 of 2019: Family Law Act 2019

An Act to amend the Judicial Separation and Family Law Reform Act 1989; to amend the Family Law (Divorce) Act 1996; to amend the Civil Partnership and Certain Rights and Obligations of Cohabitants Act 2010; to make provision, in the event of the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from membership of the European Union occurring without an agreement between the United Kingdom and the European Union under Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union setting out the arrangements for such withdrawal, for the recognition of certain divorces, legal separations and marriage annulments granted in the United Kingdom or Gibraltar; and to provide for related matters.


Number 38 of 2019: Consumer Protection (Gift Vouchers) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Consumer Protection Act 2007 ; and to provide for related matters.


Number 39 of 2019: Finance (Tax Appeals and Prospectus Regulation) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Finance (Tax Appeals) Act 2015; to amend the Taxes Consolidation Act 1997; to amend the Civil Service Regulation Act 1956; to amend the Companies Act 2014; and to provide for related matters.


Number 40 of 2019: Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons Act 2019

An Act to give effect to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons done at New York on 7 July 2017 and for those purposes to provide for offence relating to acts prohibited by that Treaty; and to provide for related matters.


Bills that have been passed by the Oireachtas and expected to be signed by President before the end of the year:

41. Finance Bill 2019

An Act to provide for the imposition, repeal, remission, alteration and regulation of taxation, of stamp duties and of duties relating to excise and otherwise to make further provision in connection with finance including the regulation of customs.


42. Social Welfare No. 2 Bill 2019

An Act to amend and extend the Social Welfare Acts; to amend the National Minimum Wage Act 2000 and the National Training Fund Act 2000; and to provide for related matters.


43. Housing (Regulation of Approved Housing Bodies) Bill 2019

an Act to provide for the regulation of approved housing bodies for the purposes of protecting certain housing assets provided or managed by such bodies; to establish a body to be known in the Irish language as An tUdaras Riala.Ia na gComhlachtai Tithiochta Faomhaithe or, in the English language, as the Approved Housing Bodies Regulatory Authority and to confer functions on it; to provide for the registration of certain persons as approved housing bodies; to provide for the setting of standards for approved housing bodies relating to governance, financial management, property and asset management and tenancy management and compliance with those standards; to provide for the carrying out of standards assessments and the monitoring of the implementation of compliance plans; to provide for the carrying out of investigations; to make provision in relation to the protection of approved housing bodies; to provide for the application, with modification, of certain provisions of the Companies Act 2014 to approved housing bodies; to provide for the cancellation of registration of approved housing bodies; to provide for the establishment of an Appeals Panel to hear appeals from certain decisions of the Approved Housing Bodies Regulatory Authority; for those purposes to amend the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1992; and to provide for related matters.


44. Microbeads (Prohibition) Bill 2019

An Act to provide for the prohibition on the manufacture or placing on the market of certain products containing microbeads; to impose restrictions in relation to the disposal of substances containing microbeads; and to provide for matters connected therewith.


45. Landlord and Tenant (Ground Rents) (Amendment) Bill 2017

An Act to amend the Landlord and Tenant (Ground Rents) (No. 2) Act 1978 so as to better enable a lessee to acquire fee simple; and to provide for related matters.


46. Gaming and Lotteries (Amendment) Bill 2019

An Act to amend the Gaming and Lotteries Act 1956 and to provide for related matters.


47. Criminal Records (Exchange of Information) Bill 2019

An Act to give effect to Council Framework Decision 2009/315/JHA of 26 February 2009 on the organisation and content of the exchange of information extracted from the criminal record between Member States; to give effect to Council Decision 2009/316/JHA of 6 April 2009 on the establishment of the European Criminal Records Information System (ECRIS) in application of Article 11 of Framework Decision 2009/315/JHA2; and to provide for related matters.


48. Health Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2019

An Act to amend the Health Insurance Act 1994 to specify the amount of premium to be paid from the Risk Equalisation Fund in respect of certain classes of insured persons from 1 April 2020; to amend that Act to specify the amount of the hospital utilisation credit applicable from 1 April 2020; to make a consequential amendment to the Stamp Duties Consolidation Act 1999; and to provide for related matters.


49. Blasphemy (Abolition of Offences and Related Matters)

An Act to abolish the offences of blasphemy and blasphemous libel; to amend the Censorship of Films Act 1923 and the Censorship of Films (Amendment) Act 1925; to repeal certain provisions of the Defamation Act 2009; and to provide for related matters.


50. Industrial Development (Amendment) Bill 2019

An Act to extend the powers of Enterprise Ireland to make grants, make loans and purchase shares and to provide for other related matters and, for those and other purposes, to amend the Industrial Development Act 1986, the Industrial Development Act 1993, the Industrial Development (Enterprise Ireland) Act 1998 and the Microenterprise Loan Fund Act 2012; to provide for the repeal of Part 3 of the Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union (Consequential Provisions) Act 2019; and to provide for related matters.


51. Appropriation Bill 2019

An Act to appropriate to the proper supply services and purposes sums granted by the Central Fund (Permanent Provisions) Act 1965, to make provision in relation to deferred surrender to the Central Fund of certain undischarged appropriations by reference to the capital supply services and purposes as provided for by section 91 of the Finance Act 2004 and, for the purpose of maintaining a sufficient amount of moneys in the Paymaster General’s supply account so as to enable the discharge of particular liabilities, to make provision for repayable advances from the Central Fund.


52. Migration of Participating Securities Bill 2019

an Act to make, in the public interest, provision with respect to the contingency that a substitute securities settlement system, compatible with the law of the European Union, may be required, on or after 30 March 2021, for the securities settlement system commonly known as “CREST”; for that purpose to enable issuers of certain securities to avail themselves of the procedures hereafter provided whereby such a substitute securities settlement system will, by virtue of the operation of this Act, become available in respect of those securities and to provide for related matters.


53. Consumer Insurance Contracts Bill

An Act to reform the law of consumer insurance contracts and to provide for related matters.


Constitutional Amendment:


54. Thirty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution (Dissolution of Marriage) Act 2019

An Act to amend the Constitution.