Meeting of the Parliament 20 December 2022
I thank Ms McNeill for her point of order. As members are aware, the Presiding Officer decides the groupings at stage 3. A number of factors are considered in determining how amendments are grouped, but the principal purpose of grouping amendments is to minimise repetition by debating together amendments that are on a similar topic.
When an amendment is relevant to more than one group, consideration of where to place it will be based on factors such as avoiding repetition, ensuring that alternative ways of addressing the same issue are considered together and avoiding procedural issues, such as amendments being pre-empted before they have been debated.
The grouping of an amendment does not curtail the scope of what a member can say in their contribution. I advise Ms McNeill that amendment 128 will remain in group 13 but, as I have said previously, it is certainly my intention and that of the Deputy Presiding Officers to allow members to contribute as fully as we can.