It is proposed to take No. 17, motion re referral to select committee of proposed approval by Dáil Éireann of the terms of the association agreements between the European Union and Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, to be taken without debate; No. 38, statements regarding attacks in Paris; No. 39 , Registration of Lobbying Bill 2014 - Order for Report, Report and Final Stages; and No. 8, Customs Bill 2014 - Order for Second Stage and Second Stage. It is proposed, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, that in the event a division is in progress at the time fixed for taking Private Members’ Business, the Dáil shall sit later than 9 p.m. tonight and Private Members’ Business, which shall be No. 179, motion re hospital emergency departments, shall, if not previously concluded, adjourn after 90 minutes, and shall also take place after the Order of Business tomorrow and shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after 90 minutes on that day; No. 17 shall be decided without debate; the proceedings in relation to No. 38 shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after 30 minutes and the following arrangements shall apply: the statement of the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste and the leaders of Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin and the Technical Group, or a person nominated in their stead, who shall be called upon in that order, shall not exceed five minutes in each case, and such Members may share their time; and a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply which shall not exceed five minutes. Tomorrow’s business after Oral Questions shall be No. 39, Registration of Lobbying Bill 2014 - Report and Final Stages (resumed).
Order of Business
There are three proposals to be put to the House. Is the proposal for dealing with Private Members' Business, agreed to? Agreed. Is the proposal for dealing with No. 17, motion re referral to select committee of proposed approval by Dáil Éireann of the terms of the association agreements between the European Union and Georgia, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, to be taken without debate, agreed to? Agreed.
Will there be an opportunity for the Dáil to discuss that issue outside the foreign affairs committee? Will the agreement be discussed in the Chamber?
This is a purely technical issue in referring it to the committee.
I understand but the Taoiseach has not intimated if there will be a broader debate.
It must return to the Dáil for approval. It is a matter between the Whips as to whether time for debate is afforded to it. Is the proposal for dealing with No. 38, statements regarding the attacks in Paris, agreed to? Agreed.
It is a pity the Dáil was not brought back yesterday as it sends out the wrong signal that it is essentially returning for a day and a half this week.
The Deputy's party would have brought us back even later.
I want to make an important point before Deputy Kehoe starts his silly laughing again. It is not good enough to have 30 minutes for this debate on the Paris atrocities. That arises because the Dáil's business is being shoehorned into the time between 2.30 p.m. today and 5.30 p.m. tomorrow. It does not do the Parliament justice that we cannot order our affairs in a more dignified manner. Essentially, we are allocating a half hour to discussing one of the most appalling global atrocities and attacks on free speech. We must be conscious of both the role of this Parliament in the public and how it is perceived. Other issues could also be discussed and there was no reason we could not have come back yesterday.
After the atrocities in Paris last week, Ministers, including the Minister for Defence, Deputy Coveney, and the Tánaiste, rather hurriedly indicated that the provision relating to blasphemy in the Constitution would be removed and there would be a referendum to facilitate that. We know the Constitutional Convention recommended that the article referring to blasphemy be removed from the Constitution, and that was supported by all political parties. In light of the statements from the Tánaiste and other Ministers, will the Taoiseach indicate when we can expect legislation to provide for the holding of such a referendum this year? Is it the Government's intention to do this?
I have seen the published list of legislation. I am very conscious of the exhaustive efforts put in by Deputies and Senators right up to the day before Christmas Eve on the water services Bill. I am not saying people groaned when they read this legislative list but No. 17 refers to another water services Bill to "address outstanding issues reflected in the Government's water package from November 2014". Will this tale of ongoing legislation ever end? Will we be dealing with legislation pertaining to Irish Water right up to next Christmas? We read this morning, with information arising from replies to parliamentary questions, that water meters will not last 15 years, if they last even that long.
We cannot debate the issue now.
They will not be used until approximately five years from now. I have a hunch they will never be used for the purpose for which they were commissioned. When can we expect that water services Bill and will the Taoiseach explain its purpose, given the exhaustive deliberations on the subject which occurred just before Christmas?
The health (general practitioner service) Bill will introduce universal GP services to all those over 70. We know that up to 50,000, or perhaps more, medical cards were taken from people over 70 but they will now get a GP card returned to them. When can we expect that and regulations to be brought forward to provide for children under six getting GP care? The Tánaiste indicated it would happen "soon" or "early in the new year". The Minister for Health, Deputy Varadkar, has indicated that he "hopes" the scheme will be rolled out by the end of 2015. I know there are growing differences between the Labour Party and Fine Gael, as last week alone I counted six Labour Deputies who condemned Fine Gael.
This is the Order of Business.
The Minister of State, Deputy Ó Ríordáin, frightened me when he said he blamed everything on Fine Gael last week. Will the Taoiseach clarify what will happen with GP care for those under six and over 70?
Deputy Stanton made the observation that there should be a short period allocated for discussions in respect of the incidents in Paris. He is Chairman of the committee dealing with justice matters. The Constitutional Convention made a recommendation that references to blasphemy should be removed from the Constitution and the Government accepts that. That referendum will not be held this year. We indicated that in considering the recommendations of the Constitutional Convention, if the Government accepted them, it would say so without indicating a timeline. Two referendums will be held this year and there will not be any further referendums.
What do they deal with? One relates to marriage equality.
There will be one relating to a reduction in age of eligibility for the office of president.
Is that more important than the blasphemy issue, given what happened in Paris?
The people might be divided on it.
The people's Constitutional Convention did not decide observations on priority for referendums. It made recommendations on elements that should be considered for referendums.
Does the Dáil have a role? Do elected representatives have any role?
There are to be two referendums.
Who elected them?
One relates to marriage equality and the other relates to the presidential issue. They both came from the work of the Constitutional Convention.
Does the Dáil have any role? Should we at least consider it?
Similarly, the question of blasphemy arose from the work of the convention. That referendum will not be held this year.
The Deputy's party did nothing for so long.
With regard to the water services Bill-----
The Deputy's party could have dealt with blasphemy in the Defamation Act.
-----we can expect the heads - it will be a short Bill - before the end of the January.
Why did the Minister-----
I hope that will be enacted by the end of February. With regard to the general practitioners issue, it is expected the legislation for those over 70 will be dealt with in the first quarter of 2015 and negotiations are ongoing with the GPs with respect to those under six.
What about the water services Bill?
I have answered that.
We cannot have a session without a water services Bill.
I call Deputy Adams.
What about the water services Bill? The Taoiseach has not answered the question.
The Deputy has had nearly ten minutes.
The question was not answered.
Which one?
I asked about the water services Bill.
That was answered.
The Deputy was not listening.
We have been asking for the past two years.
I answered it.
What is the answer?
The Deputy should have listened.
Will the Taoiseach repeat the answer?
There will be four or five heads in the water services Bill and they will be produced before the end of January for the Government. I hope it will be enacted by the end of February.
I want to raise an issue regarding referendums. There is to be one on lowering the age of presidential candidates but there was also a commitment to hold a referendum on extending the vote to Irish citizens in the North and in the diaspora. In November, the Minister of State, Deputy Deenihan, stated the Government would hold a referendum to permit Irish people living outside the State to vote in presidential elections.
I did not.
It was reported-----
We will not have a discussion across the floor about the issues.
The blasphemy issue has already been raised and it strikes me that the members of the Constitutional Convention will be very disappointed about this. They put in much work on these issues, as the Taoiseach knows; he has commended them on it. Given last week's horrific events in Paris, will the Taoiseach review his position on the blasphemy clause? In deference to the folks who cannot live in this State, will the Taoiseach consider the other matter? I apologise if I misquoted the Minister of State but it was reported in an Irish-American newspaper that he stated there would be a referendum to permit people outside the State to vote.
I also want to raise the Cabinet sub-committee, details of which were announced yesterday. It is a new sub-committee which will set out Government proposals to mark the centenary of the 1916 Rising. When will the Government publish the remit for the sub-committee and will there be a transparent and accountable process in place? I witnessed a debacle at the GPO when the Taoiseach launched this initiative and there was much nonsense related to the video that was launched by the Government. Bad service was afforded to the Irish language and the signatories of the Proclamation.
They were not even mentioned in all of this. There is already an all-party Oireachtas consultation group on commemorations, so what will be the relationship with the new sub-committee of the Cabinet? Can we also ensure there will be an all-Ireland or, indeed, a wider approach with the diaspora because, as we know, the Rising was funded by Irish-America and many people in Liverpool, Glasgow and London. The Proclamation itself pays tribute to gallant allies abroad. Can there be an all-island or, indeed, a wider global view of this?
When will we hear about the development of what the Taoiseach described as the "laneways of history" in Moore Street? There is potential for a very fitting museum and an educational asset and for the redevelopment of the inner city and city centre, in particular the north inner city.
My last point deals with two very pertinent issues ar an clár reachtaíochta nua - the new legislative programme - which came out today. I refer to the public health (alcohol) Bill. There is a crisis around public health in regard to alcohol. In the previous session, this Bill was in section C and it is still in section C. The health information Bill, which is such a crucial issue and the subject of great controversy and concern, in particular for families of ill people and for patients themselves, was in section C in the last session and it is still in section C. These two Bills are vital to preventative measures which, if properly implemented, would reduce the number of patients spending long periods of time in our hospitals.
There are 41 Bills in this session - through to the summer. Obviously, we try to say to Ministers and the Departments that these are priority Bills. There is some change because of the necessity to introduce them as quickly as possible. The two Bills the Deputy mentioned are important. The public health (alcohol) Bill is scheduled for later this year, as is the health information Bill. It depends on the progress made in finalising the Bills and how they can get onto the clár in terms of the scale of the legislative programme.
As I said, the Constitutional Convention recommended the removal of blasphemy from the Constitution, which the Government accepts. I had originally thought that it might have been possible to hold a number of referenda on the one day but I have found from talking to people that if one tries to do that, people may well switch off. They will say they do not understand this and that they need more time to have this explained to them. They will ask why we are holding so many referenda. People generally may not be all that interested in referenda. Two referenda will be held this year – one on marriage equality and one on presidential eligibility. The people of Carlow-Kilkenny will have an opportunity to vote in a by-election.
In respect of the work the Minister of State, Deputy Deenihan, did as the former Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, he had in place a situation for the development of Moore Street, the protection of the national monument and the developments around that, which were not in his control. Obviously, that is not going ahead in the way in which it was envisaged. This is quite complicated, as the Deputy will understand, but while time is short, I hope it might still be possible to have an appropriate development on the national monument, although there are different elements, as the Deputy is aware, in respect of the scale of the monument and what should be done in the locality.
The Deputy mentioned votes for Irish emigrants and for people in Northern Ireland and that the Minister of State, Deputy Deenihan, had made some comment in the United States. I think I heard the Deputy make one himself in regard to freedom of the press when he was over there. In regard to the Cabinet sub-committee, I want to formalise the structure around the preparations for 2016 in order that they are decisive and clear. The group already there will continue because it will engage with the parties, organisations abroad and others who wish to make observations so that we can get this as right as possible. The reason for having a Cabinet sub-committee, which Ministers will attend, is to support the Minister, Deputy Heather Humphreys, in leading the presentation and implementation of an appropriate, comprehensive, sensitive and inclusive commemoration process for 2016.
In respect of the Deputy's comment on the debacle, as he called it, at the GPO, I think it was a very historic occasion indeed. It seemed to me as if he knew some of the people who were involved in the background music that was taking place when the contributions were being made by the various speakers. I am not sure whether that is true or not.
I asked the Taoiseach when the remit of the Cabinet sub-committee would be published.
I expect next week. I will send the Deputy the full details.
I wish the Taoiseach and everyone a very happy new year. I wish to declare a vested interest. In regard to the importance of our post office network, I would like to ask about the communications regulation (postal services) (amendment) Bill. Will this Government work to ensure the protection of our post office network? It is of vital importance and I plead with the Taoiseach and his Government to save our post offices.
I thank Deputy Healy-Rae for his comment in regard to the new year. As the Deputy is aware, the situation in so far as post offices are concerned is now the subject of a very well-regarded business development group under the chairmanship of Bobby Kerr, who understands the retail business exceptionally well. I would say to the Deputy that the Government has no policy of closing post offices.
The only people who can protect the future of post offices are the communities who use them. The Government has already outlined the opportunities and options open for consideration as to how post offices can be maintained. Believe me, the Government does not want to close any post office. The only community that can keep them on a sustainable path is the local community. It will not be too long before this business development group reports. Every opportunity will be given to encourage the continuation of post offices, although the situation has changed radically, as the Deputy knows.
Will the Taoiseach tell the Minister for Social Protection that?
I would like to ask the Taoiseach about the planning and development (No. 1) Bill. Potentially, many developments on the housing side are being delayed because people will not submit applications for planning permission because they are working under the 2000 planning regulations, in particular Part V in regard to social and affordable housing. Will the Taoiseach ensure this Bill comes before the Dáil as quickly as possible?
It will be in this session.
In 2012, the Taoiseach advised the Dáil that he had made an agreement with the European Union for the retrospective recapitalisation of the Irish banks. On Monday last, the Minister for Finance raised the white flag of surrender in regard to that. Today, we find that the EU has made special financial arrangements for the big boys of Europe, in particular Italy and France. Will the Taoiseach make time for a debate on this issue in the Chamber?
It is not necessary. Our country is in a very different position from Greece. This matter has arisen because there is a general election in Greece at the moment.
There will be one here soon.
We have exited the bailout programme and our country is able to borrow money at 0.86%, which is very much down from the bond yields of 15% a number of years ago. The situation is that the decision of June 2012 was one that was made by the European Council to clean up the enormous economic mess that was left to this Government as a legacy. What we are trying to do is in the interests of the Irish taxpayer. The options are being considered by the Government and the Minister for Finance and the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform to see which is the best to get back the most money for the Irish taxpayer.
The Minister for Finance has confirmed that he expects that every cent this Government puts into the functioning banks will be recovered over a period. We have lessened the burden of the mess left by our predecessors-----
The Taoiseach will not allow a debate in the Chamber on this very important issue.
-----by reconstructing those loans and dealing with the promissory notes, and by not having to borrow €3 billion every year in interest for Anglo Irish Bank, in respect of which this Government did not pay one red cent.
The Taoiseach has surrendered to the EU again. It is quite simple. He has surrendered again.
When does the Taoiseach expect the Employment Equality (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill to be passed by the Dáil? It appears to be stuck on Committee Stage. We propose to hold a referendum this year on marriage equality, but employment equality is within our gift. Will the Taoiseach pay particular attention to moving it beyond Committee Stage, please?
Is that the Bill that Senator Bacik introduced in the Seanad?
Yes. It is to amend section 37(1) of the Employment Equality Act 1998.
We have to wait for it to come from the Seanad before we can see how it will be processed further.
We heard announcements this morning of housing initiatives, some of which would be workable and are short term. There is no date for publication of the landlord and tenant law reform Bill, which is on the B list of the Government’s legislative programme. If these initiatives are to be of value, it will be in the short term. Does the Taoiseach have any timeline for the publication of the Bill? Will these initiatives be positioned in this Bill?
I do not have a date for the publication of the Bill. The references made this morning are speculative. The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government is considering a range of areas and elements in housing, not least of which is to start the actual construction in respect of which the Government has made a substantial amount of money available for the next few years.
The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Alan Kelly, has made it clear that rent controls are not possible. Recent reports have suggested that new powers may be given to the Private Residential Tenancies Board, PRTB, to curtail excessive rent increases by landlords. The haemorrhage from rent supplement arrangements and the rental accommodation scheme, RAS, to homelessness continues unabated. Can the Taoiseach confirm these reports and whether legislation is required, and when and if it will be brought forward? I assume this would be the landlord and tenant law reform Bill. It is urgent because there is an avalanche at the moment.
I cannot give a date for the publication of the landlord and tenant law reform Bill. The Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government is considering the matters the Deputy refers to, among others. He will bring his conclusions to Government and publish them in due course. I cannot confirm the implementation of the speculation I saw in the newspaper today.
Will the Taoiseach give an explanation for, or time for a debate on, the appointment of Goldman Sachs to advise the Government on its disposal of AIB?
That is not for the Order of Business.
It is very serious. The company's record on financial matters in Greece, America and elsewhere is very damaging. This falls under the Central Bank (consolidation) Bill. The company has zero credibility and I am shocked.
The Deputy is shocked again.
He is really shocked.
Deputy Mattie McGrath is speaking about Goldman Sachs doing an assessment for the Government on following through on the best option for the Irish taxpayers-----
Pro bono?
-----to get back €29 billion for them, which we hope to do over some years.
Goldman Sachs has less credibility than the Taoiseach.
When will the commencement order be signed for the Fines (Payment and Recovery) Bill 2013 to allow fines to be paid in instalments rather than as one single payment, as at present, which very often results in a person having to go to prison?
I will respond on the detail of that as soon as possible.
When does the Government propose to hold a referendum on Article 41.2, the women in the home clause, of the Constitution, as recommended by the Constitutional Convention?
When will the Government act on its commitments regarding the wider availability of adrenaline auto-injectors given by the Minister for Health to Caroline Sloan, the mother of Emma Sloan, who died as a result of anaphylactic shock? I understand there is to be a HSE consultation regarding wider availability of these life-saving adrenaline auto-injectors and other medicines used in emergency situations. When will this consultation open and what will be its terms of reference? I commend Caroline Sloan, who has single-handedly brought the issue of anaphylaxis to national prominence.
I am not sure that is a matter for legislation, but I will have a response on the matter sent to the Deputy.
In respect of Article 41.2, and any other recommendations for referendums to be held or discussed arising from the Constitutional Convention or otherwise, this will be a matter for the Administration that will take up duty next year. We will hold two referendums this year and I have confirmed that that will be it.
In respect of recent comments about crimes being committed by people on bail, would it be possible to nudge the bail Bill forward from its present position in the Government legislation programme under section C to a more prominent position, where it might receive early treatment?
There is a bit of a miracle here. Deputy Durkan, I think, has raised this on 50 or 60 occasions.
On 72 occasions.
The heads of the Bill are expected shortly. It has not just been nudged but is actually moving.
I thank the Taoiseach.
I wish the Ceann Comhairle, the Taoiseach, the leaders of the Opposition parties and my colleagues a happy new year.
There is talk that Aer Lingus is for sale and that the International Airlines Group, IAG, is making an offer. The Government should consider making it a term of any offer-----
I am afraid I cannot help the Deputy on this point. It is not for the Order of Business.
Before Christmas, we had a long, extended debate in this Chamber about the Irish aviation superannuation scheme, IASS.
I appreciate that and I think it is an important issue. If the Deputy puts this down as a Topical Issue matter, I will consider it.
It is an opportunity to ensure that any buyer of the company improves investment in the pension fund for those deferred members.
We are in a period of offer officially on that matter, and there are constraints on the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport in respect of commenting on it.