It is proposed to take No. 4, Financial Services (Deposit Guarantee Scheme) Bill 2009 — Order for Second Stage and Second Stage. It is proposed, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, that the Dáil shall sit later than 8.30 p.m. tonight and that business shall be interrupted on the adjournment of Private Members' business, which is No. 73 — motion re unemployment, to be taken for 90 minutes at 7 p.m., or on the conclusion of No. 4, whichever is the later. The proceedings on Second Stage of No. 4 shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion at 7 p.m. tonight.
Order of Business.
There are two proposals to be put to the House. Is the proposal for the Dáil sitting agreed to? Agreed. Is the proposal for dealing with No.4 agreed to?
This is one of five guillotines that is proposed for this week. We find this unacceptable. This Bill deals with the guarantee scheme for individual depositors, but the Minister published a supplementary miscellaneous provisions Bill on Friday evening. From the Dáil schedule, I understand this Bill will come before the House and be guillotined next week. It provides for the bank guarantee to be extended indefinitely by ministerial order from September 2010. This is a very odd way to do business. We have vital business on banking that is being split into two Bills over two weeks and which will both be guillotined. The deposit guarantee scheme is clear enough, because it was discussed before. However, the twin Bill on extending the bank guarantee by ministerial order is not. It is disgraceful to break up these two Bills, and then subject both of them to guillotines.
We have five guillotines on Bills this week. That is simply not acceptable for the scrutiny of this type of legislation. The bank guarantee is the biggest financial undertaking this country has ever undertaken and it is not good enough to subject it to guillotines.
I understand that apart from Front Bench spokespersons and Ministers, only two or three people have indicated a wish to speak on Second Stage of the Bill. On that basis, we should be able to complete our business for 7 p.m. this evening.
So there is no need for a guillotine. Why does the Taoiseach not withdraw it?
All I am saying is that the level of business that is suggested for the Bill, based on the number of people indicating a wish to speak on it, means that we should finish it by 7 p.m.
There is no need for the guillotine at all.
Question put: "That the proposal for dealing with No. 4 be agreed to."
The Dáil divided: Tá, 75; Níl, 65.
Tá
- Ahern, Dermot.
- Ahern, Michael.
- Ahern, Noel.
- Andrews, Barry.
- Andrews, Chris.
- Ardagh, Seán.
- Aylward, Bobby.
- Blaney, Niall.
- Brady, Áine.
- Brady, Cyprian.
- Brady, Johnny.
- Browne, John.
- Byrne, Thomas.
- Carey, Pat.
- Collins, Niall.
- Conlon, Margaret.
- Connick, Seán.
- Coughlan, Mary.
- Cowen, Brian.
- Cregan, John.
- Cuffe, Ciarán.
- Cullen, Martin.
- Curran, John.
- Dempsey, Noel.
- Devins, Jimmy.
- Dooley, Timmy.
- Fahey, Frank.
- Finneran, Michael.
- Fleming, Seán.
- Flynn, Beverley.
- Gogarty, Paul.
- Gormley, John.
- Grealish, Noel.
- Harney, Mary.
- Haughey, Seán.
- Healy-Rae, Jackie.
- Kelleher, Billy.
- Kelly, Peter.
- Kenneally, Brendan.
- Kennedy, Michael.
- Killeen, Tony.
- Kirk, Seamus.
- Kitt, Michael P.
- Kitt, Tom.
- Lenihan, Brian.
- Lenihan, Conor.
- McEllistrim, Thomas.
- McGrath, Mattie.
- McGrath, Michael.
- Mansergh, Martin.
- Martin, Micheál.
- Moloney, John.
- Moynihan, Michael.
- Mulcahy, Michael.
- Nolan, M. J.
- Ó Cuív, Éamon.
- Ó Fearghaíl, Seán.
- O’Brien, Darragh.
- O’Connor, Charlie.
- O’Dea, Willie.
- O’Flynn, Noel.
- O’Hanlon, Rory.
- O’Keeffe, Batt.
- O’Keeffe, Edward.
- O’Rourke, Mary.
- O’Sullivan, Christy.
- Power, Peter.
- Power, Seán.
- Roche, Dick.
- Ryan, Eamon.
- Sargent, Trevor.
- Scanlon, Eamon.
- Smith, Brendan.
- Treacy, Noel.
- White, Mary Alexandra.
Níl
- Allen, Bernard.
- Broughan, Thomas P.
- Bruton, Richard.
- Burke, Ulick.
- Burton, Joan.
- Byrne, Catherine.
- Clune, Deirdre.
- Costello, Joe.
- Coveney, Simon.
- Crawford, Seymour.
- Creed, Michael.
- Creighton, Lucinda.
- D’Arcy, Michael.
- Deasy, John.
- Deenihan, Jimmy.
- Doyle, Andrew.
- English, Damien.
- Enright, Olwyn.
- Feighan, Frank.
- Ferris, Martin.
- Flanagan, Charles.
- Flanagan, Terence.
- Gilmore, Eamon.
- Hayes, Brian.
- Hayes, Tom.
- Higgins, Michael D.
- Hogan, Phil.
- Howlin, Brendan.
- Kehoe, Paul.
- Kenny, Enda.
- Lee, George.
- Lynch, Kathleen.
- McCormack, Pádraic.
- McGinley, Dinny.
- McGrath, Finian.
- McHugh, Joe.
- McManus, Liz.
- Mitchell, Olivia.
- Morgan, Arthur.
- Naughten, Denis.
- Neville, Dan.
- Noonan, Michael.
- Ó Snodaigh, Aengus.
- O’Donnell, Kieran.
- O’Dowd, Fergus.
- O’Keeffe, Jim.
- O’Mahony, John.
- O’Shea, Brian.
- O’Sullivan, Jan.
- O’Sullivan, Maureen.
- Penrose, Willie.
- Perry, John.
- Quinn, Ruairí.
- Rabbitte, Pat.
- Reilly, James.
- Ring, Michael.
- Shatter, Alan.
- Sheahan, Tom.
- Sherlock, Seán.
- Stagg, Emmet.
- Timmins, Billy.
- Tuffy, Joanna.
- Upton, Mary.
- Varadkar, Leo.
- Wall, Jack.
Tellers: Tá, Deputies Pat Carey and John Cregan; Níl, Deputies Paul Kehoe and Emmet Stagg.
Question declared carried.
Has the Government given consideration to an announcement of an independent inquiry into the activities of Dr. Michael Shine? The Taoiseach is aware that——
We cannot go into that now.
I am simply asking whether the Government has given consideration to the announcement of an inquiry into the consequences of the activities of Dr. Michael Shine. We are aware that the Medical Council's fitness to practise committee dealt with this over 17 days, between 17 January and 21 July 2008. Since then, other witnesses have come forward to give evidence. It is a most serious case that deserves a most serious response.
It will be dealt with on the Adjournment.
Does the Minister for Health and Children intend to make a statement on the theft of 15 laptops from the HSE?
Neither matter is in order, as Deputy Kenny knows well.
It is, in so far as——
It is not in so far as anything.
——protocols and the legislation governing this.
Too tenuous by far.
As pointed out by Deputy Naughten, this was due to be reported to the Data Protection Commissioner. Some 580,000 people had their personal details lost in 2008.
Deputy Kenny can ask about it on Leaders' Questions tomorrow morning. We cannot deal with it now.
It shows that this organisation, on which we are spending €16,000 million, still has not learned its lesson.
If I may raise something that is in order——
Good.
——in the past period, the Government has lost the services and therefore the space of three of their Members, former Deputy Pat The Cope Gallagher, the late, lamented Séamus Brennan and the former member of the Progressive Democrats in the Seanad, Senator Ciaran Cannon. Two of those vacancies have been filled by Fine Gael, Senator Cannon and Deputy George Lee. The Government, having lost those three Members, has not given up any space. The Whip, in examining this, proposes to offer space to Deputy Lee in the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
That is great.
It is not good enough.
That cannot be discussed on the Order of Business, as the Deputy knows well.
There is nowhere else to discuss it.
He could be given the coat room.
The Taoiseach should see that everybody here gets their——
The Deputy has made his point. The Whips will have to discuss that or the Deputy can meet the Taoiseach about it. I cannot have it on the Order of Business.
——facilities for work.
It is not possible.
Deputy Lee has a mandate from 28,000 people and the Government intends to hive him off to the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
Please ask something which is in order so we can move along. I cannot deal with that now so the Deputy can forget about it.
We should get this sorted out for Deputy Lee and Senator Cannon.
I am sure the accommodation can be dealt with by the Whips or somebody else.
The Whip has already allocated the space of the late Tony Gregory to Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan.
It is the amount of harbours in south Dublin.
The new Deputy is to be placed there to extend his level of experience in agriculture.
The Minister is welcome back.
Deputy Kenny should ask a question which is in order. I will have to call on Deputy Gilmore.
The Taoiseach might respond.
He will not, as it is a matter for the Whips.
We cannot have this, as the Ceann Comhairle well knows.
We cannot have this on the Order of Business either.
Tell the Government parties to get it sorted.
Deputy Kenny could give Deputy Lee his office.
The Whips can discuss the sorting out of accommodation.
An elected Member is being disenfranchised.
There were other issues.
Give him an office.
Several issues were raised.
Three issues were raised.
I did not know about this until Deputy Kenny raised the matter.
Neither did I. That makes two of us.
The Ceann Comhairle knows now but is not giving any direction. He should get on and sort it out.
It seems very unfair. Something should be done very soon.
When we are on the other side of the House, we will put the Government parties out on the side of the street.
I have heard that before.
The Minister will not have time to get his briefcase.
It is a declaration of war.
It will never happen.
They will be there along with the laptops.
The Deputies can have that discussion later in the evening.
The report of the commission of investigation——
Fianna Fáil can meet in the bar in Buswell's.
In July 2007, the Government approved an extension of a year for the term of the commission of investigation into the sexual abuse of children in the Dublin archdiocese, to report by September 2008. It was established in March 2006. When is it expected to report?
I cannot give a definite time for that as it acts independently of the Government. My understanding is that it is due soon but I do not have a date.
I also intended to raise the issue mentioned by Deputy Gilmore. Is the Taoiseach in a position to indicate whether the report will be published before the Dáil goes into recess? There were reports that it was to be published either next week or the following week, towards the middle or end of June. Bearing in mind the matter's seriousness, it may have to be discussed again and it would be most unfortunate if it was published immediately following the Dáil going into recess, as we would not be able to address it until next September.
The all-party motion passed last week contained a provision in which the Government agreed it would look at an amendment to the residential redress board legislation to facilitate individuals who were victims of abuse making application for redress to that board in circumstances other than just "exceptional circumstances", as stated in the legislation. When will the Government make a decision on the matter?
As we are here today, a 74-year-old man is in the High Court trying to get the courts to determine his entitlement to have his claim for compensation made through the redress board. Victims of clerical and institutional abuse should not be placed in a position where they must do battle in the courts with the State or a State agency——
The Deputy has asked his question. He should move to the next one.
——to have compensation claims addressed. Will the Taoiseach address the matter urgently as it is a simple matter to amend the Bill? Is it intended to make that decision to facilitate the passage of amending legislation in the House before the summer recess? Many people are now affected by the matter and it should not be left over.
Is there an intention on the part of the Government to bring before the House prior to the recess the provisions of a new treaty, which must be approved by this House, between the State and Vietnam with regard to foreign adoptions? There is a substantial difficulty in this area and every Member of this House has met and spoken with distraught people who have been approved for foreign adoption but find themselves in no-man's land.
Will the Taoiseach respond to those three matters?
They are unable to process their foreign adoptions in circumstances where they will be recognised. There is an urgent need to conclude the discussions with Vietnamese authorities and bring the matter before the House. Will the Taoiseach indicate if that will happen before we go into recess?
I do not know if that matter will have concluded by then but I know the Minister of State, Deputy Barry Andrews, is working hard in that respect with another sovereign government. We are aware of the views and needs of many prospective couples who would like to adopt and the question arises as to whether we can satisfactorily conclude a renewed agreement with Vietnam. Unfortunately, I cannot give any indication as to when that will be, although it is a priority of the Minister of State with responsibility for children and youth affairs.
On the other matter, I do not determine the publication of reports from those acting independently of the Government. I understand the publication will be soon, although I do not know when it will be published. Whenever it is published, it will be discussed in the House in due course.
With regard to the redress board matter, the implementation plan being drawn up is in respect of the recommendations in the Ryan report and issues raised by survivors' groups are also being considered in the context of the discussions we have begun with them.
The redress board matter was not a recommendation of the Ryan commission. It did not address that issue, which was an agreed matter in the motion before this House. It requires a political decision to——
The Deputy has made his point
——introduce a very brief amending piece of legislation to give a new window of opportunity to the victims of abuse to seek redress.
The Deputy has had ample opportunity to expand the point.
That is not a matter originally indicated as one——
The Taoiseach has answered so I must move on.
——which the Minister of State, Deputy Barry Andrews, would address. It is a matter of the Cabinet making a decision and I suggest to the Taoiseach that the Cabinet should make that decision and have this important matter addressed in a humanitarian way before we go into recess.
I call Deputy Bruton.
There is agreement across the House on the issue.
The Deputy should not have come in again.
Is the position of the National Asset Management Agency legislation any clearer at this stage? The interim board has been established, is receiving submissions and progressing with much work. It is unclear when the legislation will come before the Dáil. Will it be before July or will the Dáil be recalled in order to deal with the matter during July? What is the Government's intention at this stage?
The Minister for Finance has indicated that he is dealing with this as a matter of priority. It is an arduous and complex task and he has indicated the possibility of returning in September, if necessary, to put the legislation through the House as well. It depends on the rate of progress by the end of the month.
The following motion has been on the Order Paper since November last year: "That Dáil Éireann approves the report of the Minister for Defence regarding the services by the Defence Forces with the United Nations in 2007." When is it proposed to give Government time to debating this motion approving the services given by our Defence Forces to the UN in 2007?
The matter could be discussed with the Whips. There are many priorities as we come to the end of this session. I agree that we should take the occasion at some stage to record the House's appreciation of the tremendous work done by the Army in service in the United Nations, the 50th anniversary of which was celebrated last year.
When will the health (miscellaneous provisions) Bill be taken in the House? Is the Taoiseach aware that County Roscommon is now the only county in Ireland which does not provide enhanced subvention for elderly people? In light of the hardship this causes to a number of families and individuals——
If all Deputies begin this type of questioning, we will be all over the place.
Will the Taoiseach ensure the Minister for Health and Children deals with this issue and that the people of County Roscommon are treated in the same manner as every other citizen?
I call the Taoiseach on the first issue raised, the one concerning legislation.
I understand from the Chief Whip that the Bill is ordered for Report Stage.
The Government has been in negotiations over the past several weeks with the leaders and Foreign Ministers of the other 27 EU member states on the various texts concerning the Lisbon treaty. We hear about them in the media through leaks. Will the Taoiseach brief the House on the state of play with the treaty before he goes to Brussels on Wednesday evening? From what I understand, he intends to sign up to an agreement on a second referendum on the Lisbon treaty by Friday. Considering the matter is being dealt with prior to any direct reference to the House, will the Taoiseach put something on the record of the House about it?
I do not believe this is in order without a reference to legislation. However, if the Taoiseach wants to be helpful, he may respond.
As the Deputy knows, the matter is a question of providing texts to the Council conclusions of December last, which have been discussed in the House. The normal process is for the House to discuss the aftermath of a Council meeting.
The specific texts referred to by the Deputy were further discussed this morning and progress has been made on them. Given the nature of these matters, it is not always the case that items are decided in full before a Council meets. That is what we are working towards and various member states have indicated their positions on various aspects of it. We are trying to pull together a position which will have the agreement of all member states. We are continuing to discuss both the substance and status of the texts. It is not logistically possible for me to comply with the Deputy's request. The role of the Executive in this matter is to obtain, in an appropriate format, the legal guarantees set out in the December conclusions and have them incorporated in the June Council conclusions, which can then be debated by the House after our return from the summit.
Will the Aviation (Preclearance) Bill be fast-tracked through the Dáil before the summer recess, as it has just been passed by the Seanad? It would be timely and important as Shannon Airport could have full preclearance facilities in operation by 29 July and Aer Lingus has reduced its weekly transatlantic flights from 14 to eight. The Government should also use its 25% stake in Aer Lingus to allow the facilities to be put in place.
The Government's intention all along has been to have the Bill enacted before the summer recess.
Will it come before the House before the summer recess?
There is no other way in which it can be done.
In light of recent findings that 64% of the population is either obese or overweight, the third worst rate in Europe, and a report in this morning's newspapers——
I am not sure whether this is in order.
A Cheann Comhairle, you have to let me build up to it. Tá sé ag teacht. Is there pending legislation on food labelling? Fast-food outlets in Ireland have formed an alliance and are not prepared to follow the lead of their UK counterparts in putting a calorie counter on their menus.
A question on the Order of Business must be on specific legislation.
Is there planned legislation for food labelling and other nutritional information? I believe it was promised previously for last year.
I know, Deputy, but you cannot invent the menu here; you must ask what is on it.
And you, a Cheann Comhairle, dictate the menu. I want to know if the Taoiseach has any intentions relating to the menu.
Sometimes it can give one indigestion.
Is legislation promised in this area?
Legislation is not promised in this area but it is a cause for reflection for us all.
I anticipated that kind of reply. Has the Government accorded any priority to the enactment of the Defamation Bill in this term?
The Bill is on Committee Stage but I am not aware it is intended to have it completed this term. I will ask the relevant Minister to come back to the Deputy on this matter.
Ireland signed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities some time ago. In order for it to be ratified, the mental capacity Bill must be enacted. When will the Bill be published, as it has been put off for some time now? Will we see Government proposals on Dáil reform this side of the summer or some time next year?
The mental capacity Bill will be published later this year. A parliamentary question to the relevant Minister will answer the Deputy's query regarding the convention. The second matter will be in the course of the year.