It is proposed to take item 1. There will be 30 minutes per speaker. Members may share their time. The debate will be brought to a conclusion at 4 o'clock, with the Leader of the House concluding not later than 3.45 p.m. If speakers are offering at that stage we will review arrangements, but on the basis of the information before me they should allow those who wish to speak to do so.
Order of Business.
The Order of Business is agreed. I am sure the House will facilitate any speakers offering at the conclusion of the debate.
A terrible tragedy occurred 25 years ago today in Northern Ireland when 13 people were killed. A couple of weeks later a 14th person also died from injuries received that day. Apparently new evidence has emerged which was either not available to the Widgery commission or ignored by it. The Fianna Fáil Party supports the motion by John Hume yesterday calling for a public inquiry. I understand that 75 MPs in the House of Commons have signed their names to the motion. We commend them for making this call.
The British Prime Minister should take immediate steps to establish an inquiry, which would help to restore the confidence of the Irish people in British justice. I hope this message will be conveyed to the British Government, John Major, and all concerned. We believe it is of vital importance. In view of the evidence collected and provided by honourable and decent people over the past number of years, the time is right to call for an inquiry.
The Order of Business is agreeable to us. I support Senator Fitzgerald's call, especially in view of the words by the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs last night that any new evidence on what happened so tragically in Derry 25 years ago should be examined.
Will the Leader ask the Minister for Health to advise on the situation regarding the environmental health officers? It is almost the anniversary of their work to rule. We are receiving alarming reports regarding food sanitation, rather than food safety. There are reports of salmonella and lethal E-coli infections. It is important this dispute is brought to a conclusion immediately. I realise the officers have investigated all cases of food poisoning and have been most responsible in that regard. However, the dispute, which has been ongoing for almost a year, cannot continue.
The Order of Business is agreed. It is desirable that the debate concludes today because there are many items on the Order Paper from the previous session. It would be better to conclude the discussion today and I support Senator Fitzgerald's suggestion that the position should be reviewed at 3.45 p.m. if necessary.
I also support Senator Fitzgerald's remarks about the need to reopen the investigation into the events of Bloody Sunday at a time when that sad occasion is being commemorated. It is unquestionable that new evidence exists on the basis of soldiers' testimony. In such circumstances it is important that the matter is reopened. I ask the Leader to request the Taoiseach and the Tánaiste to do everything possible at that level to support the motion on the House of Commons' Order Paper, which has been signed by so many MPs, seeking the reinvestigation of this matter to bring it to a final conclusion.
I raised a matter yesterday but I cannot recall if the Leader dealt with it. It relates to the urgent need for a debate on agriculture and particularly the problems in the beef industry in light of the Egyptian ban on live cattle exports, the extension of the Russian ban to more counties, the reduction in export refunds and the revaluation of the green currency. These developments are recent and should be discussed. It is important the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry outlines how he is dealing with the problems in the industry.
I support the call for an inquiry into the events on Bloody Sunday. It would not only be an assurance that the British Government is at last examining the true facts of the case as they are presented but also remind people who in those days urged the use of armed force every time a crowd gathered on the street. It was a lesson to them that the situation at that time was infinitely complex, but even today some people in the North mutter that is the only way and that they should go in and put them down. The people who need to be put down cannot be identified and Bloody Sunday was a perfect example of utter folly. It was as if nobody had learned any lessons from Amritsar years earlier. It was an object lesson to loyalists who called for fierce action against the people on the streets.
The newspapers are currently urging a general election. The Government does not need to be reminded that it is in the interest of newspapers to call for general elections. When an election is held, reporters go to the bar and start cashing post dated cheques because stories do not need to be collected. They just jump onto word processors. Regardless of whether there are grounds for an election, I would not look to the newspapers to find them. There is talk of a general election and the Opposition is entitled to call for it; that is its job. However, the newspapers and the Opposition have not mentioned the effect on the peace process of open preparations for an election here at the same time as that is happening in Great Britain. It is not a good idea or a happy outlook. Will the Leader mention my concerns to the appropriate Minister and seek an assurance that this aspect has been considered?
He will be very happy to hear that. They will postpone it.
Will the Leader ask the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht to come to the House for a debate on national heritage centres and the special areas of conservation? These are major problems in the west and all mountain areas. Many sheep farmers will be put out of business if the directive is implemented. A debate is timely because, as Gay Byrne said on television recently, lunatics must be producing such directives in Europe. Many directives have neither sense nor reason and Ireland should think of itself and stop heeding some of the daft directives.
Is the Senator seeking a debate?
If Europe wants to know, the cause is simple. It is a lack of people in rural Ireland and a lack of food for most birds and wild animals. That is why they are dying.
Will the Senator put a question to the Leader?
Small farmers should be encouraged to set aside agriculture to feed wildlife. That is how it would be conserved and preserved and not through daft directives which will put farmers out of business. I appeal to the Leader to ask the Minister to come to the House to debate these subjects.
Members will have an opportunity next week to express their views in detail on Northern Ireland. However, given the day that is in it, it is appropriate that Senator Fitzgerald raised the reopening of an inquiry into the events on Bloody Sunday. It is also significant that the matter is on the House of Commons' Order Paper today in the name of Mr. John Hume and a large number of other MPs. I support the call for a reopening of the issue and the Tánaiste expressed his views. It appears new evidence exists which is pertinent to the events at that time. I do not subscribe to the view that reopening the matter after so many years will add to sectarian tension. That would not be the case. It is important the truth is reached and that is the overriding consideration. The experience in South Africa shows that reaching the truth can be a healing process. It is most important for the families involved that their minds are set at rest regarding what exactly happened that day.
Yesterday I raised my concerns about Ms Róisín McAliskey and I am sure the Leader conveyed the views of the House to the Tánaiste. However, I ask him to bear in mind the urgency of the matter, given her health and the health of her unborn child. I would be grateful for an indication next week that official concern has been expressed to the British authorities.
I support the call for a full and thorough investigation of the events of Bloody Sunday. Senator McAughtry reminded the House that the slaughtering of innocent people goes back to Amritsar. Bloody Sunday was one of the worst cases of state terrorism this century since the Sharpeville massacre. Senator O'Sullivan correctly pointed out that when the truth emerges it is a potent force for healing and reconciliation and not necessarily division. Some revisionists in society suggest that merely asking questions about Bloody Sunday is wrong.
Will the Senator put a question to the Leader?
Will the Leader investigate if there is a mechanism whereby we could find out what material is available in the Department of Foreign Affairs? I was a civil servant at the time and I recall suggestions that the Irish authorities possessed a large amount of photographic evidence. Given the nature of this matter, an international inquiry should be sought.
Will the Leader ask the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht what is happening with the remnants of Luggala? The Office of Public Works is breaking the law because it has not made any effort to reinstate the site and that is a concern. It has become an eyesore and it is time the Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht commanded the situation and outlined what is happening.
One of the most persistent features of elections in recent years is that fewer people are voting at each successive election. Will the Leader raise this issue with the Government in the context of changing the day of the election? We have a fixation with calling elections on Thursdays and it seems eminently sensible to change the day of the poll to a Saturday or Sunday to allow people to vote when they have the maximum amount of free time. This would be in the interest of all politicians. The Leader might arrange a debate on this or put it to the Government. The Seanad could lead with this proposal as I believe there is support for it among the population as a whole.
I strongly support John Hume's initiative on an inquiry into the events of Bloody Sunday. I was a member of Government at the time and recall those events well. I also recall the impact of the events on the people of Derry when we went there as an official Government delegation. It is essential we do as much as we can to heal those wounds and vindicate those who were wrongly and maliciously accused of violence or attempted violence. It should be done so that the healing can start. I was in Government for many subsequent years.
The Senator should put a question to the Leader.
It is 25 years on and successive Governments have expressed total dissatisfaction with the Widgery whitewash. The events of the day itself were bad enough but that an official Government "inquiry" should attempt to vindicate the murders and accuse the victims cannot be left on the record. For that reason, this is not just an issue for Dublin or Ireland but one of fundamental rights. To mark our sympathy today not just for those killed but those whose families were wrongly and outrageously implicated for things they never did, we should stand in silence before we commence to commemorate them.
We are not discussing this matter on the Order of Business. The Senator should put a question to the Leader.
Would the Leader propose we stand in silence for a moment? We could extend that to all the victims of the tragedy in Northern Ireland but we should mark our respect in some fashion today.
I support the call for a full inquiry into what happened 25 years ago today. That event heightened sectarian divisions in Northern Ireland and we still see the outcome of that. After this event many people joined organisations and got involved in violence as a reaction to it. We still see the results of that event as the violence that ensued still continues and the reaction of people to what happened has a crucial bearing on that violence. I fully agree with Senator O'Sullivan that knowing the truth would have a great healing effect on both communities, especially the Nationalist one, and the whole island.
I support Senator Dardis's call for a debate on agriculture. On the Adjournment in December I asked for a guarantee that beef prices would be maintained in January. I did not get that guarantee and they were not maintained. Cattle being slaughtered now are realising £60 to £70 a head cheaper than a month ago. That is a slaughtering premium that applies in the months January to April, the purpose of which was to encourage beef farmers to winter fatten cattle. It defeats the purpose when they do not get the beef premium.
A question to the Leader.
I am asking for a debate on agriculture to address the problems in that sector as it is badly needed. I also ask for a debate on the recent decisions of the National Roads Authority. According to the newspapers they have decided to spend money on various schemes and I am disappointed that my county is neglected. The Croom by-pass needs to be started soon and it is not mentioned. There are terrible traffic jams in Croom.
That would be a matter more appropriate to the Adjournment.
No. We want a debate on the National Roads Authority announcement. The country roads are in a very bad condition and that will have to be addressed. The Croom by-pass is very urgent.
I ask the Leader for a debate on the high cost of insurance for young drivers. We have all seen the recent upsurge in the taxi business. It is a growth area throughout the country and the cost of insurance for hackney drivers is huge. I ask the Leader to arrange a debate with the Minister for Enterprise and Employment.
I support calls for an inquiry into Bloody Sunday. This is the 25th anniversary and it is important this House make its voice heard. I am very involved in the case of East Timor and the massacre in Dili was one of the pivotal points in the struggle for independence of the East Timorese. The massacre in Derry on Bloody Sunday was a similar pivotal event in the history of this country. It was nothing other than murder by the State which was subsequently justified by the State in a clearly partial and incomplete inquiry, which is discredited. This must be acknowledged. I ask the Leader if it is not possible, in view of the apparently unanimous support in the House for an inquiry, for a very brief motion to be introduced? It could be passed by the House and endorsed by every Member urging the Government to request the United Kingdom authority to institute such an inquiry. We cannot demand but we can urge the Government to request a neighbouring sovereign State to behave decently.
I also support Senator Fitzgerald and other Senators on their call for an inquiry into the events of Bloody Sunday. It is appalling that after 25 years we are still in this situation and I support the views expressed here this morning.
I ask the Leader to ascertain from the Minister for Finance or the Minister for the Environment what the current situation is relating to the drawing down of Cohesion Funds from the EU. The Leader will be aware that there is substantial funding sanctioned for Ireland and available as Cohesion Funds for a variety of projects dealing with pollution control, provision of water services and sewerage facilities. He will also be aware that there is growing concern at the levels of water pollution. Senator O'Kennedy can advise him of the situation in Lough Derg, where there is serious concern for its future. The Lough Derg anglers have cancelled all their trout fishing competitions for this year and this is an appalling situation for one of our most important national lakes. There is also the problem of declining stocks of trout in the Corrib and Mask. All the inland fisheries are threatened with pollution and, at the same time, millions of pounds are available through Cohesion Funding.
A question for the Leader.
Applications for the funding are in Brussels. Some projects have started but a huge number of projects are waiting to start. The initiative must come from the Minister for the Environment and the Leader should impress upon him the necessity of indicating to the Commission the schemes in Ireland he wishes to see proceed this year. We would like to see some starting date for Lisdoonvarna, Doolin and north Clare. We had 500 people at a meeting in Lisdoonvarna on Monday——
We are not having a debate now.
It is important to emphasise how widespread the depth of feeling in the community is regarding these issues. We had almost 600 people at a meeting in Lisdoonvarna last Monday pleading with the politicians to impress upon the Minister the desirability of releasing funds for that project. The contract documents are with the Department. All that is needed is a nod from the Minister and I am asking for that before there is further appalling damage done to one of our most important natural inland fisheries resources.
I wish to support the call for a debate on the 25th anniversary of Bloody Sunday. I concur with all that has been said.
I wish to call on the Leader to seek the House's support for an investigation into the untimely death of the Brother Larry Timmins of the Franciscan Order in Clara who died under very suspicious circumstances in Kenya. He was a brilliant young man who gave his life doing great work in that area. The suspicious circumstances in which he died are appalling if true. The Franciscan Order has called for an inquiry, and the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Tánaiste have taken a personal interest in it. All our missionaries throughout the world and their families here are very disturbed, particularly those families with missionaries in Kenya.
I forgot to say that the debate which follows the Order of Business will be opened by the Chairman of the All-Party Oireachtas Committee on the Constitution, Deputy Jim O'Keeffe.
I am grateful to Senator Fitzgerald for raising the terrible events of 25 years ago in Derry. Most of us vividly remember that day with horror and shock. The vividness of our anger and our sorrow will probably remain with us all of our lives. We remember with horror of a different kind the official coverup known as the Widgery report. It is a travesty of the truth and the author should be ashamed of it. It is in everybody's interest that the truth of what happened comes out. I would be happy to ask that the House stands for a moment to remember, not just the people who were killed 25 years ago, but all who have lost their lives in Northern Ireland. I thank Senator O'Kennedy for having made that proposal.
If Members wish to make time available for statements and the passing of a motion in support of what John Hume is proposing in the House of Commons, the Whips can meet to arrange this. If that is the will of the House I would certainly be supportive of it.
I suggest to Senator Henry that the matter she raised should be raised on the Adjournment. Senator McAughtry's concerns about an early election are ones which have a great deal of substance. There is stable, good Government with a working majority in the Lower House and a working minority in this House.
Who wants an election? The Government can run for another two years under the Constitution.
There is no need for a rush to the country.
Hear, hear.
Senator Farrell raised the question of heritage centres and I will try to facilitate this.
I conveyed Senator Roche's views to the Tánaiste and there will be an opportunity next week to discuss the matter.
Senator Hayes raised the question of changing the days on which elections are held. He will have two opportunities to make his case for change during discussion of the European Elections Bill, and the Electoral Bill, which will be taken in the next couple of months.
I will speak to Senator Dardis regarding a debate on agriculture. However, there is an extremely heavy load of legislation for discussion over the coming months which will have to receive priority.
Senator Burke raised the high cost of insurance for young drivers. I would like to make time available for this issue. There is an interesting report from the Law Reform Commission out today regarding the matter.
Senator Daly raised an issue which I think is important and I will speak to the Senator regarding time for it.
Senator Cassidy raised the tragic death of an heroic and generous young man, Brother Larry Timmins, in strange circumstances in Kenya. I do not know what powers are open to a foreign country for finding the truth, but the Minister and the Department of Foreign Affairs are extremely concerned and will do everything in their power to ensure that the truth is found. We pay tribute to the work of Brother Larry Timmins and send sympathy to his family and to his order in their great loss. There are thousands of Irish missionaries doing noble and unsung work in undeveloped countries.
What about the National Roads Authority?
I am sorry Senator—Croom did find itself pushed down the agenda this time. It is a matter for the Adjournment. I will try to have a debate on the National Roads Authority.
I now ask Members to stand for a minute's silence.
Members rose.
Order of Business agreed to.