The Order of Business is No. 1, State Authorities (Public Private Partnership Arrangements) Bill, 2001 – Second Stage, with the contributions of spokespersons not to exceed 20 minutes and all other Senators not to exceed ten minutes. Senators may share time.
Order of Business.
The Order of Business is agreed. Will the Leader invite the Minister for Education and Science to the House to discuss the ongoing impasse in his dispute with the ASTI? It is clear to any sensible observer that the Minister is daft if he thinks he can find the necessary number of people in the time available to take over the supervisory duties. The damage to industrial relations and the bad feelings that will be left in schools if people are brought into them in this way will last a long time. This must be clear to the Minister. The teachers do not want this dispute any longer and it is clear that there are ways to resolve it if the Minister will start talks. Will the Leader ask the Minister to come to the House to explain the situation to us or to hear that what he proposes is daft?
Will the Leader ask the Deputy Leader of the House to make available and put on the record the speech of Deputy O'Malley in Limerick on Saturday, especially the section where Deputy O'Malley said that the damage done by the twin towers attack, foot and mouth disease and the AIB collapse is much less than the damage being done to the economy at present by the Government's over-spending? A discussion on that would be very appropriate.
The Senator is not quoting Deputy O'Malley accurately.
Will the Leader indicate when the promised debate on banking will take place?
To pick up on the last point made by Senator Manning, I understood we were to have a debate on banking this week. The record for last week will show that, once again, the Leader has misled the House. He said clearly that there would be a discussion on banking this week and that we could deal with the AIB issue. On the Leader's side of the House, Members raised associated issues, such as bank charges and a number of other matters. The Leader gave us a guarantee, but here we are again. It is very difficult to do business on this basis. I do not know why we cannot have that debate. There seems to be consensus in the House and this is not a party political issue. I ask the Leader to rethink this matter.
This time last year, I asked that we consider carefully the position of the European Commission in terms of its relationship with this House. Members may recall that subsequently the Committee on Procedure and Privileges issued invitations to certain Commissioners to come here. At that time, I and many other Members made it clear that if Germany was in the same situation it would not have received a rebuke or a reprimand from the Commission. That exact situation has arisen this year; it is a long road that has no turning. Germany is the country in difficulty and the Commission has, predictably and as anticipated, flunked the matter once again. It is not prepared to take on issues.
This is the type of matter Senator Hayes is dealing with daily in the forum, where equality of treatment and parity of esteem within the Community are discussed, as is the matter of a proper relationship with governments. I ask that the Minister for Finance be invited to the House to offer his views on this matter. He should have his day in the sun, as he is entitled to on this issue. He had to suffer ignominy last year and we should look at that issue this year so that we can explain our position in a positive way.
I also ask for a discussion on the extraordinary list published last week surveying the "worst" towns in Ireland – it is an unfortunate description but we know what we are talking about. This could be tied in with the Minister for Education and Science's visit to the House if the Leader accedes to the request from Senator Manning. We should look at the basis of the difficulties which, in many cases, are due to the lack of educational attainment. Members on both sides have asked the Leader on a number of occasions over recent months for a debate on education and dis advantage and how that relates to the difficulties that towns, particularly towns in the midlands, are experiencing. I thought the Leader would have shown more interest in this as he has interests in the midlands in matters relating to the other House. I ask that we deal with those issues to consider how to reverse the trend in those towns, which deserve our help and support.
I support Senator Manning's request for a debate on Deputy O'Malley's speech in Limerick. A discussion in the House would be worthwhile and it would be great if the Leader could produce the text of the speech.
I also support the request that the Minister for Education and Science come to the House. The educational arena is a mess and is now totally out of control. The Minister is stonewalling. He is having a marathon battle with the ASTI and will not sit down and talk. On 4 March, voluntary supervision will be withdrawn and the Minister will have to produce over 3,000 people to fulfil the requirements of the current voluntary supervision provided by members of the ASTI. That will cost well in excess of £1 million and, logistically, the Minister cannot do it. Some schools will open but the majority probably will be closed. Other aspects, such as the substandard primary schools we have seen in the news recently and the lack of action in disadvantaged areas, are equally important. The Minister should come to the House as a matter of urgency.
The Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands should also come to the House to outline why the most important event in the rugby calendar will not be available on RTÉ television.
It will be available on the BBC.
It will be broadcast on radio but we will have to pay to watch it on Sky. Why did the Minister not designate this as a cultural event when England designated the World Cup as a cultural event and, therefore, coverage will not be on a subscription basis? We should be able to watch this without having to pay through the nose. I support Senator Glennon's call for the Minister to clarify the matter. If he was here, he would support my call.
Senator Costello should not refer to the absence of another Member; he has made his point.
I refer to the Senator with approval and agree wholeheartedly with him.
Does Senator Dardis wish to make a contribution?
No.
No reply?
The Senator asked the Leader a question. He did not ask me a question.
In the last decade there has been a decline in the number of students taking higher level chemistry and physics in the leaving certificate, from 20% in the 1980s to 10% today. This is particularly serious because there has been a great deal of investment in the pharmaceutical and computer industries, areas which need science graduates.
When the Irish Financial Services Centre was planned, it was agreed that there would be a museum in stack A. For many years it was promised that there would be a museum, aimed particularly at children, to encourage an interest in science. It now appears it has been decided to open a museum on the history of Dublin. That is very attractive and will, apparently, allow for more retail outlets than a science museum. In addition, there will not be the unfortunate problem of so many children going around the area.
The Government must examine this area because our future depends on encouraging children to become interested in the sciences. Will the Leader ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to come to the House to discuss the issue? Why is such a museum considered unacceptable when our future depends on students becoming interested in the sciences at second level so they will continue it at third level?
The Minister for Education and Science should come to the House to talk about the ASTI. These contingency plans were put in motion months ago and it would be a good idea to reinforce his already stated confidence that he can facilitate the schools in supervision duties.
We will wait and see about that.
There is also a need for a wider debate on education, particularly relating to disadvantaged areas and sciences.
The Minister is taking a long time to reinforce confidence.
Has there been a massive hike in inflation? There are commissions for this, that and the other now, but insurance costs have increased by an enormous margin. The Leader must be aware of this development. Small businesses are being forced to close because of insurance costs, but no one is prepared to answer any questions about them. Why have there been increases of up to 70%? That will have an effect on the inflation rate and jobs will be lost.
Will the Leader ask the relevant Minister to come to the House to explain why insurance rates are so high? I am referring to general insurance cover for small businesses which cannot afford it because the premiums are too high. The matter has got totally out of hand, yet nobody is answerable for it.
I support Senator Denis Cregan's request. Insurance is not an easy issue but some steps can be taken to resolve it. Some time ago the Government agreed to establish a personal injuries compensation board, but it has not yet got around to doing anything about it.
Hear, hear.
The great advantage of such a board would be to reduce the legal fees that make up a high proportion of insurance costs. I understand the delay may be due to a wish not to upset the legal profession.
The legal fees.
If that is the reason, the relevant Minister should attend the House to explain it. We must do something about the level of insurance premiums which is serious both for commercial and personal cover. It is particularly serious for those who need cars to get to work. The 2% levy adds to the cost of insurance and dates from the PMPA days 20 years ago. We can do something about insurance by having a debate in the House.
I commend the Government, particularly the Minister for Public Enterprise, for ensuring that the cost of rail travel is among the lowest in the European Union – this was disclosed by a recent EU survey. I also commend the decision to remove the bust of Lady Lavery from the main hall of the Central Bank. The House will agree that her influence on the political events of this country, particularly in the early part of the last century, was of a rather undue and inordinate nature. We are all heartened to find that, from now on, she will take an appropriate place in the background.
I support Senator Denis Cregan's call for a debate on insurance. Several Members of the House sought such a debate prior to the events of 11 September 2001, while others did so after that date. As Senator Quinn said, as parliamentarians, we can do something about insurance. On a radio programme today, I heard Mr. Pat McDonagh stating that he had caught a number of fraudulent claimants on camera. However, no judge has referred any such criminal activities to the Garda Síochána. The responsible Minister should attend the House as a matter of urgency because the matter is a national scandal.
Some months ago, the Minister for Health and Children established a review group concerning the deregulation of pharmacies, but the group has not yet reported. Will the Leader ask the Minister when the report is to be concluded and published?
Senators Manning, O'Toole, Costello and Ormonde expressed views on educational matters. I will endeavour to arrange a debate on these matters at the earliest possible opportunity. Those Senators and others called for a debate on banking and I am endeavouring to arrange such a debate in a matter of days rather than weeks. Last week I said I would try to have a debate on banking today, but I also stated that legislation initiated in this House takes precedence over all statements and debates. That is the case today as a Bill will be initiated here and the debate on banking must be deferred. I thank the party leaders and Whips for their understanding in this regard. I will review progress with them tomorrow afternoon to see how we can facilitate an urgent debate on events in the banking sector.
The Minister of State at the Department of Finance will be in the House today, tomorrow and on Thursday. This will present an opportunity to make progress in having the debate later this week.
On a point of order, the Minister for Finance will not be here tomorrow or Thursday. The Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs will take the Pensions (Amendment) Bill.
Yes. The Minister of State at the Department of Finance is in the House today. I will endeavour to arrange the debate. The Finance Bill will be debated in the House on 20 and 21 March and many of the financial matters that have been raised by Senators can be debated in the House during that week.
Senator Costello asked for clarification from the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Gaeltacht and the Islands about the international rugby match. I am disappointed it will not be shown on television. I understand that it will not be shown on terrestrial television channels in the UK either. This is a new departure and it gives us an opportunity to address the problems surrounding sporting issues.
Senator Henry requested that the Tánaiste come to the House to discuss the subject of science and the science museum proposed for Dublin. I will make that request. Senators Dino Cregan, Liam Fitzgerald, Quinn and Burke called for a debate on the insurance industry. The issue of insurance is a major challenge for legislators. There have been increases of 30% or 40% in premia and in many cases public liability is not covered. It is a very serious matter. The Senators who have requested this debate are very experienced parliamentarians and business people, and I will facilitate a debate on this subject as soon as possible.
I note Senator Liam Fitzgerald's remarks on the euro changeover and now that the changeover has been completed I suggest we place on the record of the House our appreciation and congratulations to everyone associated with it. It was a very smooth transition from one currency to the other. I offer the congratulations of the House to the Taoiseach, the Government and all concerned.
Senator Burke asked that the Minister for Health and Children come to the House to dis cuss the imminent report on the pharmacy industry and I will make that request.
Order of Business agreed to.