Before coming to the Order of Business, I propose to deal with a number of notices under Standing Order 31.
Requests to move Adjournment of Dáil under Standing Order 31.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter: the fact that a new 16-classroom school in Naas, Scoil Bhríde, stands idle other than the infants class while more than 400 pupils are educated in prefabs and substandard and overcrowded facilities in that town; the failure to utilise the school fully before 2013 if the present enrolment policy continues; the need for the five other primary schools in the catchment area to agree a common enrolment policy; and in the absence of such an agreement, the need for the Minister for Education and Science to intervene directly to impose an enrolment policy that will enable the new school to open fully in September 2006.
Hear, hear.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter: the need for the Minister for Education and Science to decide to recognise Gaelscoil na Lochanna in Blessington, County Wicklow, in view of the high number of children already enrolled in the school and the significant efforts which have been made by parents to raise funds for a permanent site.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter: the problems encountered by people suffering from chronic debilitating illnesses such as MS; the effect of such illnesses on the social lives, emotional stability, financial resources and physical health of the families of those affected if they are deprived of medical cards in their own right; the complexity and difficulty of the efforts of care givers and receivers to cope with long-term illnesses; the expense involved in consulting numerous specialists which involves endless tests and hospitalisations before any decision is made on a diagnosis; the loss to such people of their independent means of earning a living; and the need for the Government to give medical cards to chronically ill people with severe debilitating conditions in their own right.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter: the need for immediate change in the manner in which the disabled person's grant is assessed and paid — one third of the grant is paid by local government and the balance by central government — given that the inability of some local authorities to pay one third of the grant is resulting in a lack of equity; the need to rewrite the guidelines for the scheme, which are based on wheelchair disability, meaning that much of the time of occupational therapists who assess those with ambient disabilities is wasted on writing arguments to help people qualify, to avoid wasting the time of key professionals; and the need to revise this necessary scheme, which keeps people at home and helps them to stay independent, as a matter of urgency.
Hear, hear.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter: the failure of the State to provide clean water to the people of Ballycroy, County Mayo, where many dependent and ill older people live; and the urgent need for potable water to be supplied in tankers pending the switching on of the new group water scheme on 7 November 2006.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter: the need to increase Garda numbers in County Donegal to counteract the escalating number of incidents of anti-social behaviour throughout the county, which is partly due to the fact that there are fewer gardaí serving in the county at present than there were in 1997.
Hear, hear.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter which I have raised previously in the House but will raise again now in the presence of the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, Deputy O'Donoghue: the need for the Minister to address the skewed priorities of the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism which allocates an embarrassing 37% of its funding to the hugely profitable dog and horse racing industries, and the need to spend such moneys on people, for example by spending additional funding on swimming pools in neglected communities and on other much-needed sports facilities rather than gambling with the futures of our children.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter: the need for the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children to explain to the House the reasons an additional €1 million is not being given to the southern area of the Health Service Executive to provide for the immunisation of new-born children against the acquisition of tuberculosis, especially as it is the only region of the country where such a service is not provided.
I seek the adjournment of the Dáil under Standing Order 31 to debate the following urgent matter: the actions of this Government which have led to this country now having a record level of vulnerability and dependency on imported energy; the fact that 90% of the energy used in this country is imported; the need for the Government to shift gear urgently to prioritise the maximum possible decrease in energy demand by means of proper planning and reductions in wastage; the need for this country to harness its potential, such as wind power and the maximum south-facing roof space that can be used for solar water heating; the need for an investigation into the policy failures which have led to breakdowns in the new but inefficient peat stations at Shannonbridge and Lanesborough, especially given that the cost of wind energy is subsidising these peat stations; and the scandalous abuse of power I have outlined, which is tantamount to national sabotage.
Having considered the matters raised, they are not in order under Standing Order 31.
It is a very urgent matter.