I wish to advise the House of the following matters in respect of which notice has been given under Standing Order 21 and the name of the Member in each case: (1) Deputy Olivia Mitchell – the urgent need for Government funding to construct the essential link from Dundrum to the southern cross motorway; (2) Deputy Gormley – the need to reconsider the removal from health stores of a range of health products, including St. John's Wort; (3) Deputy Broughan – the urgent need to provide substantial resources in the budget for youth education, sport and leisure to support the anti-joyriding task force in north east Dublin; (4) Deputy Seán Ryan – the need for additional caretaking services at Pope John Paul national school and St. Sylvester's infant national school, Malahide; (5) Deputy Durkan – the need to discuss the reference to publications in the Oireachtas Library in the reply to Parliamentary Question No. 195 of 6 October 1999; (6) Deputy Neville – the death by suicide of a prisoner at Wheatfield Prison on 4 November 1999; (7) Deputy Rabbitte – the measures being put in place to ensure the employment of the 2,800 workers under the wholetime jobs initiative programme; (8) Deputy O'Sullivan – the failure of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to ensure the new prisons at Clover Hill and Mountjoy are in a position to take prisoners; (9) Deputy Sheehan – the decision to allow St. John's Wort and other herbal products to be dispensed by prescription only from 1 January 2000; (10) Deputy Stanton – the need to enable escorts to be employed on school buses transporting children with special needs to and from school; (11) Deputy Ring – the entitlement of a person (details supplied) to invalidity pension and the need to consider the use of an independent ombudsman for appeals; (12) Deputy Kenny – the impact of proposals to extend the gas pipeline system without taking into consideration a significant gas find off Achill Head; (13) Deputy Wall – the urgent need for the Government to increase the financial assistance available to people under the rent subsidy scheme due to the huge rise in private rents over the past 18 months; (14) Deputy Brendan Smith – the need to introduce measures, including financial assistance, to assist pig producers in view of the serious difficulties facing this sector, particularly in the Border region; (15) Deputy McManus – the need to consider an extension of the proposed Luas transport system to Bray.
The matters raised by Deputies McManus, Brendan Smith, Sheehan and Seán Ryan have been selected for discussion.