It is proposed to take No. a10, Non-Use of Motor Vehicles Bill 2013 – Financial Resolution; No. 16, Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Bill 2013 - Second Stage (Resumed); and No. 2, Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Bill 2012 - Order for Second Stage and Second Stage. It is proposed, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, that No. a10 shall be decided without debate. Private Members' business shall be No. 99, motion re Good Friday Agreement (resumed), to conclude at 9 p.m. tonight, if not previously concluded.
Order of Business
There is one proposal to be put to the House today. Is the proposal for dealing with No. a10, Financial Resolution re the Non-Use of Motor Vehicles Bill 2013, without debate, agreed to? Agreed.
The Taoiseach mentioned the unseasonable weather in the context of the fodder crisis. Without question, we are in unprecedented times in terms of weather patterns and severe weather events. As I passed a few people on the way into work this morning, the man selling newspapers to me said, "This is some month of May". The heads of the climate action and low carbon development Bill were published two months ago and the Bill has not yet been published. There is concern about the lack of targets in that Bill and what is perceived by those who have followed this issue for some time as a lack of commitment on behalf of the Government to the climate change agenda and to organising proper societal awareness of the issues that are emerging. As the Taoiseach will be aware, scientists across the globe are alarmed because the most recent tests have shown the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the highest ever in the world in 3 million years. People tend to push all of that to one side and dismiss it. One of the distinguishing features of this Government has been its lack of any real engagement with the issue and this is reflected in a poor climate change Bill in terms of the heads and in the lack of urgent action on that issue. When can we expect the climate action and low carbon development Bill to be published?
The heads of Bill were referred to the committee in February of this year and the committee is doing its work on that. I am reminded-----
I refer to the full Bill.
With the committee.
-----that Deputy Martin's party, together with the Greens, failed to produce any climate change Bill.
We did. The Government has changed it and diluted it.
There is an ambitious set of objectives here which will be challenging for us to meet.
The Government diluted it.
Deputy Martin was away out the door.
They diluted it.
The committee will report on its analysis of the heads which were sent to it in February and it will come back to Government. The Bill will be published some time after that.
The Taoiseach has no interest in it. The Minister, Deputy Hogan, has no interest in it. He is afraid to upset the electoral base.
Could we have some order, please?
I note reports of progress in negotiations between the unions and the Government under the auspices of the Labour Relations Commission. Some media reports indicate the Government has dropped some of the more anti-family and anti-women aspects that led to the defeat of the proposed Croke Park II deal. Does the Government intend to introduce legislation to cut the pay of public sector workers or will it now take this opportunity to assist the talks by taking that threat off the table?
I will not go into the details of this. The Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform has pointed out clearly that the savings of €300 million are required this year and contingency legislation is being prepared in that regard. The chief executive of the LRC will issue a full report to the Minister when the ongoing negotiations are concluded. It would be hoped that everybody can join in these discussions and negotiations and that we can have a negotiated agreement in respect of reaching our targets, getting our country moving and sorting out the problems we have. This is challenging for everybody and I hope the discussions under way will result in a successful conclusion to the Croke Park II negotiations.
As I understand-----
I know the Deputy wishes us well.
I do wish the Government well, but is the legislation going ahead?
There will be no legislation until we see.
I have a question about the health information Bill regarding suicide prevention and the proposals for preventative methods. Donal Walsh, who died aged 16, will be laid to his eternal rest in his home town of Tralee today.
A Leas-Cheann Comhairle-----
Is this on legislation?
He was an inspiration to everybody.
Deputy Fleming, please------
His brave and positive attitude regarding his own fatal medical condition and his total commitment-----
Is this on legislation?
Yes.
It will become clear shortly.
It is the health information Bill, which is very relevant.
I will ask the Taoiseach on that.
It will be early next year, if he wants that.
Young Donal Walsh had a total commitment and devotion to saving lives-----
We cannot have a debate on that issue.
-----of potential suicidal cases. His stressing of the value of life by comparing his own situation when his own life was facing termination-----
I ask the Taoiseach to reply.
It was a short life and his impact on the country will last for many years to come for what he has set out in his own particular way.
The Taoiseach has said early next year. I call Deputy O'Mahony.
You will need to apply the Castleblakeney rules here, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle. The question the Deputy raised is a legitimate one. It will be early next year before the health information Bill will be published.
The fines (amendment) Bill is due to come before the House soon. Recent figures indicate a 10% increase in people going to jail for non-payment of fines. Everybody would agree that jail should be for people who commit crime and not for those who do not pay fines. The Bill would alleviate the problem. I know it is due for publication in this term, but when will it come before the House?
That Bill will be published this session.
Is the Government still on target to introduce the consumer and competition Bill in this session? Does the Taoiseach have an idea of the precise date?
It is down for this session and officials are working very hard on the draft at the moment.
In a previous reply to me I believe the Taoiseach guaranteed it would be produced in this session.
Yes.
It will be.
I still stand by that.
I also ask about the mediation Bill.
I am advised that is later this year.
I wish to ask about two Bills. On the Children First Bill, the Government ignored the Supreme Court's decision on the scandalous way in which it misappropriated the money voted by the House last year. The Supreme Court stated that the Government failed to have a discussion on it and I ask when it would do so.
What legislation, a Leas-Cheann Comhairle?
The legislation is the Children First Bill.
I did not realise the Minister, Deputy Howlin, had become the new Ceann Comhairle.
He has - or the new Whip. The Minister said earlier that I was talking nonsense - how dare he.
The Deputy should stay within-----
He should go back and talk to the farmers in Wexford and they will tell him what nonsense is.
Silly.
It is not silly.
It is silly saying we are doing nothing.
The Government is doing nothing.
The Deputy should ask the question.
I have asked the question, but the Minister is interrupting. I asked about the Children First Bill.
The Minister is heckling.
I also ask about the Central Bank (consolidation) Bill given that there are receivers up and down the country. I met approximately 50 people protesting outside a receiver's premises on St. Stephen's Green-----
The Deputy is going to tell another story now.
-----about the behaviour of banks and receivers which are carrying on outside the law in many cases.
We are not having a debate.
A Leas-Cheann Comhairle, stories-----
They are destroying good businesses.
We cannot have a debate on it.
I do not want a debate. I want to know when the Bill will come in.
The Central Bank (consolidation) Bill cannot come in until the Central Bank (Supervision and Enforcement) Bill, which is on Report Stage, is dealt with. The Children First Bill is down for this session. However, significant legal and operational matters are under discussion in the Department about it. It may not make it through for publication in this session. If not, it will be early next session.
When is the human tissue Bill expected to be published? This is to meet the key recommendation of the Madden report that no hospital post mortems should be carried out and no tissue obtained after post mortems without consent. It will also address other matters relating to human tissue, including consent arrangements for transplantation and research purposes.
There is no date for publication of the Bill, but there is a great deal of work and discussion going on about the matters to which it refers.
I ask about two Bills. The legislation on the child and family support agency was promised last year and we are still awaiting it. The Valuation (Amendment)(No. 2) Bill should give struggling businesses a window of opportunity to have their exorbitant rates reviewed downwards. When can we expect those two Bills?
The Valuation (Amendment)(No. 2) Bill is awaiting Committee Stage in the Seanad and the child and family support agency Bill is for publication in this session.
In the context of the forestry Bill, yesterday I asked the Taoiseach when he would report to the Dáil on a decision on the future of Coillte. He seemed to indicate that from his point of view it was full steam ahead with the privatisation of our forestry with all the baleful consequences seen in other jurisdictions where that happened. That surprised many Deputies because senior Labour Party Ministers had recently indicated that this reactionary move would be abolished. We had a leak from the Department, apparently from the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, that this was the case. Given that the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform is sitting beside the Taoiseach, perhaps they could clear their lines.
Very clear.
The Minister is too busy heckling.
The appropriate committee is still holding hearings and having a debate on the issue. What is the Government's thinking this morning?
They are making it up as they go along.
Will it abandon this reactionary attempt to privatise a crucial public asset?
I can see the wood for the trees. There is no change since yesterday. The evaluation required on this and on a number of other potential sales of State assets is nearing completion. When the Government has that information and those evaluations, it will make its decision.
The Minister, Deputy Howlin, told The Sunday Times a few weeks ago that he was not proceeding with it.
Deputies will be informed clearly of what that decision will be.
Deputy Martin will be the first to know.
The Minister told The Sunday Times - or his spokespeople did - last Sunday week.
I call Deputy Lawlor. I ask him to be brief as many Deputies want to ask questions.
Could I-----
The Minister is grinning, knowingly.
Deputy Martin will be the first to know.
I have no doubt. Will the Minister tell the Taoiseach as well?
Deputy Stagg announced the policy also.
I hope that is the only time a Cork man will interrupt a Kildare man this season. EU directive 2010/32/EU should have been transposed by last Saturday. When will that legislation be brought before the Dáil? Without it being transposed, there are potential liabilities on the State.
That is secondary legislation. I will need to check its status and I will advise the Deputy.
I have two questions, one seeking a debate and the other about legislation. We all know the fair deal scheme is under great pressure. We were promised a review. It has now been suspended in some parts of the country and is clearly in crisis given that people cannot have their applications processed in a timely fashion. The review is still ongoing. When will the health (amendment) Bill be published so that we can have a debate on the issue?
With regard to private health insurance, Colm McCarthy recently highlighted a report which shows private health insurance is in crisis and is collapsing around us. The Minister is bringing forward proposals on universal health insurance but the basic fabric of this proposal is falling asunder as we speak. Families are in genuine crisis trying to pay for private health insurance. This is in the context of the health (amendment) Bill. On the broader issue of health reform itself, a consultation process is taking place about hospital groupings and the small hospital framework. It would be timely for the Houses of the Oireachtas to have an opportunity to discuss this during the consultation process so we can feed into it. Many now in government opposed this policy when they were in opposition and we would like to hear their views on why they have done this volte-face so we can clarify the Government's thinking on this.
At least we have done something about it.
You have changed your mind.
The Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health and Children is fully entitled to have full and appropriate discussions-----
Deputy Kelleher was asking about the House.
-----during the consultation period about the groupings. It can be held here and we can try to make arrangements for time if it is feasible.
The committee is very busy, as the Taoiseach knows.
The more debate we have about it the more understanding there will be of just how effective it can be-----
I would not count on that.
-----and the significant change it will bring about in the delivery of proper services for people throughout the country. The health (amendment) Bill is due for publication during this session.
When does the Taoiseach expect the Garda Síochána (compensation for malicious injuries) Bill to be published? In the course of its publication, will the Taoiseach agree to lift the recruitment ban? I am led to believe a large number of gardaí will retire this year and there is a general view among rural people that we will not have an adequate police service to patrol rural areas.
The Deputy can table a Topical Issue on this.
The Garda Síochána (compensation for malicious injuries) Bill is due later this year. In the context of budgetary analysis, the Government will ensure an adequate number of gardaí to protect our people throughout the country.
With regard to the education (admission to school) Bill, is the Taoiseach aware that next September between 30 and 35 young children with Down's syndrome will start primary school? Following yesterday's all-party meeting attended by many of the Taoiseach's party colleagues, will he use his clout in the coming days to ensure these young children get resource hours in September?
Is this promised business?
Yes. I am referring to the education (admission to school) Bill. Following massive support from the Taoiseach's backbenchers, will he use his clout and pressure the Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Ruairí Quinn, to act on this issue? Some of the other Deputies had 20-minute slots and I am sticking to the agenda.
I do not think they got 20 minutes.
They were near enough to it.
It felt like 20 minutes but it was not 20 minutes.
The heads of the education (admission to school) Bill are being worked on and it is due later this year. The Minister for Education and Skills received a copy of a report from the National Council for Special Education and this report needs to be discussed by parents, teachers and all involved in this matter. After the Minister received the report the Government heard from the Minister about it.
I welcome the very positive news for Kerry General Hospital which was announced yesterday.
That is not on the Order of Business.
It is very important that we acknowledge the matter because it was very good news for Kerry General Hospital with regard to the retention of services.
What has changed?
I want to acknowledge-----
It is still under Cork.
There has been no change. It is still in Tralee.
On legislation, please.
It is very noticeable that Bertie Ahern's former henchmen in the front row seem to have forgotten the legacy they have left. Perhaps they should not be so jovial in the Chamber-----
We just admire a bit of spin every now and again.
-----because 425,000 people, many of whom are watching this morning, are suffering as a result of their actions.
On legislation.
They should not be so jovial as they sit there.
With regard to the public health (alcohol) Bill, what is the up-to-date position? What is the expected timeframe?
Ask Deputy Shortall.
We do not have a date for publication of the public health (alcohol) Bill. There is a lot of work going on.
There is a lot of friction going on.
I thank the Deputy for his positive comments regarding the publication yesterday by the Minister of the hospital groupings, with particular reference to Kerry.
For the umpteenth time I wish to raise the issue of the fodder crisis.
It is not promised legislation.
The Taoiseach, the Cabinet and the Department are not giving this the serious consideration-----
On legislation.
-----they should be giving it. It is a crisis situation and I want the Taoiseach to intervene properly.
I also wish to raise the matter of statistics provided by the Irish Prison Service in recent days which show the number of people being jailed for the non-payment of television licences has increased from 183-----
What legislation is this?
I am coming to it. The number has increased to 272. Over the past five years there has been a five-fold increase in the number of people being jailed for this offence, quite simply because they do not have the money.
I call the Taoiseach.
Under the telecommunications legislation, people will now be asked to pay for a licence even if they do not have a television. This is wrong and unfair when criminals can roam the country-----
We are not debating it.
-----and are availing of the revolving door syndrome. The Department sees fit to jail people who do not pay their television licence.
I can put the Deputy in the picture regarding people going to jail for non-payment of television licences. I have already answered a question about the fines (amendment) Bill, which is due for publication this session. The Deputy can have full transmission when it comes to the Dáil.
What about the fodder crisis? Surely the Taoiseach can give a proper answer.
Two reports recently completed on behalf of Dublin City Council and the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland found the majority of inner-city flats surveyed did not meet basic standards and did not even have planning permission.
Is this the Order of Business?
In one case, nine flats in one building had the most terrible sanitation and no proper toilet facilities. Will the Taoiseach outline when the Residential Tenancies (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill 2012 will return to the House? Is any legislation planned to deal with this appalling vista whereby for monetary gain landlords are abusing the system no end?
A parliamentary question would deal with this matter.
The Bill is awaiting Committee Stage. A housing Bill is before the House. I am quite sure if the Deputy speaks appropriately to the Leas-Cheann Comhairle he may allow him to raise the matter as a Topical Issue, and no doubt the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Hogan, will give him a full and flúirseach response.
This morning there has been much discussion about the possible sale of State assets and reviews of State assets. Will the Taoiseach ask someone in the Department to go through all of the land banks in State ownership to see which can be handed over to the IFA to be harvested this week to help alleviate the crisis? I am sure the Opposition, after having spent so much money on it, would be delighted to see a place such as Thornton Hall finally being of some benefit to the State.
I can confirm the Minister of State at the Department of Finance with responsibility for the Office of Public Works is carrying out a full audit of all land banks and properties owned by the State.
The Taoiseach would want to hurry up, because the grass only grows until October. There is only a small window.
The Taoiseach may be aware there is a considerable backlog in the Department of Justice and Equality, with Bills of the highest importance dragging on and on during the Government's tenure. When will the assisted decision-making (capacity) Bill and the Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011 progress? We have an outrageous situation whereby we are losing huge amounts of taxpayers' money and sending people needlessly to jail, and we must implement an amendment to the Fines Act. When will these three issues be dealt with?
The assisted decision-making (capacity) Bill will be this session. The Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011 is being worked on with regard to Committee Stage. I have answered several questions about the fines (amendment) Bill.
In view of the revelations in a recent television programme on organised crime, would it be possible to focus on key proposed Bills in order to combat the growth in activity by criminal gangs over the past ten years? I am referring to the bail Bill, the Courts Bill and the proceeds of crime Bill. Particular emphasis might be placed on introducing a cocktail of those Bills before the House in early course. Some of the Bills have been inherited from our good friends on the Opposition benches, and were engaged in a long gestation period while they were in government. It might be possible to focus on them now with a view to dealing seriously with organised criminal activities.
The Courts Bill is on Committee Stage in the Seanad and, later this year, the consolidated courts Bill will come before the House. As regards the proceeds of crime Bill, discussions are still ongoing with the Criminal Assets Bureau. I do not have a date for publication of the bail Bill, but it will be later this year or early next year.
Did Deputy Durkan get all that?
Deputy O'Dea would be familiar with that. There is no doubt about that.