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Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 12 Oct 2011

Vol. 743 No. 2

Topical Issue Matters

I wish to advise the House of the following matters in respect of which notice has been given under Standing Order 27A and the name of the Member in each case: (1) Deputy Derek Keating — given that the National Transport Authority, which reports directly to the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, has approved plans by Dublin Bus to change radically the public transport bus routes serving Clondalkin, Lucan, Palmerstown, Newcastle, Saggart and Rathcoole, which will affect in excess of 60,000 people who need public transport to access business in Dublin city, attend hospital and other appointments and, more importantly, get to their places of employment; that this has been done without consultation with the travelling public or reasonable notification to those affected and is causing extreme distress to the travelling public; that a new No. 13 bus was introduced from the Clondalkin area travelling across to Ballymun; that next Monday it is planned to change significantly all the No. 78 and No. 79 routes without notification, and that the No. 66, No. 25 and No. 26 routes were changed without notification; to call on the Ceann Comhairle to assist in establishing the facts on the basis that in excess of €70 million is paid from the Exchequer per year to the National Transport Authority in order to support public transport policy; (2) Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív — an ga atá ann breis airgid a cheadú le athchóiriu a dhéanamh ar Scoil Bhaile Nua, Maigh Cuilinn, Contae na Gaillimhe; (3) Deputy Dessie Ellis — the appalling housing conditions in the Balgaddy estate, Lucan, Co Dublin and the need for a co-ordinated response from South Dublin County Council and the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government to address the many outstanding structural problems that continue to damage the quality of life for the residents of Meile an Rí, Tor an Rí and Buirg an Rí; (4) Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett — the escalating accident and emergency crisis and the need to maintain accident and emergency units across the country; (5) Deputy John O'Mahony — the need to amend the criteria for eligibility for the back to education allowance which hinder applicants from taking up courses that might lead to employment; (6) Deputy Mattie McGrath — concerns regarding the composition of the Tipperary reorganisation implementation group established to implement the Government's plan for a unified county council in Tipperary and the perceived bias towards north Tipperary that exists as a result; (7) Deputy Paul J. Connaughton — the delay in making farm payments to farmers; (8) Deputy Joe Costello — the need for the Government to provide funding for Foróige to run its Big Brothers Big Sisters of Ireland programme; (9) Deputy Noel Harrington — that the construction of the Bantry town bypass on the N71, for which the planning and design process is complete and the land acquisition process is practically complete and merely awaits the announcement of funding; that this proposal is critical for Bantry as the construction of a new secondary school, due to be opened later this year, will increase the already significant congestion; that the project has been proposed for Bantry for as long as I was a member of Cork County Council, since 1999, and for a long time before this; and that it would qualify as a shovel-ready project, having completed the planning process and land acquisition stage; (10) Deputy Denis Naughten — the need for the Minister for Health to take steps to release all available trial vaccination records of children immunised in mother and baby homes, and immediately to establish a no-fault compensation scheme for those damaged by such vaccinations; (11) Deputy Aodhán Ó Ríordáin — the imminent construction of flood defences on the Clontarf promenade and the potential reopening of the consultation process; (12) Deputy Paschal Donohoe — that a statement be made on the regulation of the mortgage broker sector; whether the Government is satisfied with current levels of regulation; and whether plans exist to introduce new measures; (13) Deputy Michael McNamara — the revenue loss to the exchequer arising from the increase in off-licence sales and the decrease in on-premise consumption; (14) Deputy Billy Kelleher — to ask the Minister for Health to outline his plans to deal with overcrowding in accident and emergency departments during the winter months; (15) Deputy Charlie McConalogue — to ask the Minister for Health the date he expects the 24-hour national aeromedical co-ordination centre to be operational, given that it was due to be operational today; (16) Deputies Stephen Donnelly and Shane Ross — the fall in international rankings of Irish universities; and (17) Deputy Gerald Nash — the decision by Louth County Council to accept bottom ash at its landfill facility at Whiteriver, County Louth from Ireland's first municipal waste incinerator, operated by Indaver at Carranstown, County Meath, which will commence operations imminently.

The matters raised by Deputies Stephen Donnelly and Shane Ross, Éamon Ó Cuív, John O'Mahony and Paul J. Connaughton have been selected for discussion.

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