The Order of Business is No. 1, Education and Training Boards Bill 2012 - Second Stage, to be taken at the conclusion of the Order of Business and to conclude no later than 2 p.m., with the contributions of group spokespersons not to exceed eight minutes and all other Senators not to exceed five minutes and the Minister to be called on to reply no later than 1.50 p.m.
Order of Business
Will the Leader arrange a debate as soon as possible on the discriminatory taxes being introduced, in particular against women, children and the family? On 27 February last, the National Women's Council of Ireland issued a statement with some data on the incomes of women and the gap which exists between them, in particular women who are mothers. The statement was entitled, Being a Mother Doesn't Pay. Mothers who work are paid 31% less than women who have no children.
On the eve of international women's day, we have announced to the mothers, and the prospective mothers, of Ireland that we will tax maternity benefit, which will cost them in the region of €450 per month. This is further compounded by the €10 cut in child benefit and the property tax which paves the way for more families to fall into the poverty trap. The Minister for Finance's defence of this, that pregnant women should not earn more, is a very poor one. I have said many times that all of us would gladly pay for the relative security and protection of our children and our older people.
There are other options and choices that were open to Government with regard to raising revenue measures here. Reference has been made before to the percentages over €100,000 in income that could be used. There are other options which could be used.
Today the matter was covered in the media and many of the editorials. I shall quote from today's Irish Independent where it says that the measure is "anti-women". It is also anti-children and anti-family. According to the editorial in today's Irish Independent we could do without the measure and I agree. Today as we celebrate with coffee mornings in the House because it is the eve of International Women's Day, it is unbecoming for the Government to target women, mothers in particular and their children, by a measure of this sort when clearly there are other options available.
Tomorrow is International Women's Day and I remind colleagues that Senator Susan O'Keeffe and I are hosting a coffee morning today in the Private Members' dining room. All are welcome to attend. It is in aid of SAFE Ireland which is the national network of domestic violence services. It has developed services that respond to and advocate for the needs of women and children who are victims of domestic violence. It is an important and worthwhile cause and I invite all colleagues to attend. It is under way and shall continue until 11.30 a.m. Obviously we would like a good attendance.
Next Wednesday for the Labour Party's Private Members' time my party will put before the House the Employment Equality (Amendment) (No. 2) Bill. It aims to amend section 37 of the Employment Equality Act 1998. We have debated the issue before here and I would welcome cross-party support for the Bill.
Bravo. Well done.
I thank the Senator. I welcome the announcements made at a press conference yesterday. The Government announced the progress that it has made after two years in office. I ask the Leader to invite Ministers to attend debates here on a regular basis. I know that other Senators sought the same earlier in the week when I was Deputy Leader during the Order of Business. I know that the Leader is doing that. The Ministers could update us on progress that they make in their areas. I know that it has been done on a rolling basis but it might be worth initiating it again now that the Government has been two years in office.
I note that the priorities for the Government, as stated by the Taoiseach and Tánaiste yesterday, are job creation, reducing unemployment figures, dealing with another pressing issue of mortgage arrears and to exit the bailout by the end of the year. I know that Senator Hayden and others have raised the importance of dealing with mortgage arrears. I look forward to having further debates on the matter in the House.
I wish to call for an urgent debate on planning permission and related issues. For instance, people were granted planning permission almost five years but it is about to run out. What if they must reapply even though their local authorities are concerned and disagree with the permission that was granted to them four and half years ago? I am talking about continuing on because there are better times on the way and new houses will be built again.
I call for a debate on planning. I cannot understand the attitude adopted by local authorities to unauthorised developments which were built without permission and over a few weekends. In such cases the local authorities have refused permission and owners must reapply. Then An Bord Pleanála says "No" because the site was unauthorised, it was an unsuitable location so the development must be knocked down. Some of those buildings still stand after five and ten years. There is one instance in my county where such a building has been in existence for 15 years. It has not been demolished despite decisions being made by the local authority and An Bord Pleanála.
I call for an urgent debate on planning. Why do such cases take so long? Why can individuals ignore decisions made by An Bord Pleanála yet go through the courts and reapply? There is an issue whereby people living 200 miles away can object to planning permission. I call on the Leader to invite the Minister to attend here to debate the matter.
The Senator has made his point. I call Senator Barrett.
This afternoon in Helen's Bay, County Down, the funeral will take place of Sir George Quigley. He was one of the finest public servants of the island of Ireland that one could find in either jurisdiction. He was Permanent Secretary at the Department of Finance and Personnel in Northern Ireland. He chaired the review of the Parades Commission between 2001-02 which was a notable contribution to removing tension from the matter. In 2009, Sir George was one of two independent witnesses who were called upon to verify the decommissioning of weapons by the Ulster Defence Association. He is remembered by the Sir George Quigley Award awarded each year to cross-Border groups operating in the community and voluntary sector. More recently he chaired an industrial task force that recommended the extension of our 12.5% corporate tax rate which the Government defended so strongly to the entire island.
As the Leas-Chathaoirleach knows, the promotion of relations between the two communities was one of the functions that Arthur Griffith and President De Valera had in mind when they established the House. I cannot think of a better person who embodied that aim than Sir George Quigley. I ask the Leader to convey our sympathies to his widow, Lady Moira, and our appreciation of his immense contribution to all of the island.
I raise the issue of private education. Recent news reports outlined that the Department of Education and Skills had commissioned research into the level of funding for private schools which was over and above the resources of non-private State run schools. It was disclosed that the top nine or ten private schools had in the region of an additional €2 million available to them over and above that of a State funded school. The report also stated that if all of the privately-funded schools joined the State system it would cost the State somewhere in the region of an additional €24 million. That raises an issue which is worthy of discussion in the House, namely, the future and role of private education. We could discuss whether there is a role for private education and whether it should be State policy to encourage private schools back into the State system.
I note that a significant number of young people have, for the sake of argument, abandoned their private health cover. I know that we have a strategy towards expanding health cover but there is a concern that there is a cohort of people, particularly young people, who are now exposed when it comes to being covered for health care. There is an issue around privatisation, whether that is the privatisation of education or health care. I call on the Leader to arrange an indepth debate on private education.
On Tuesday, in the absence of the Leader, I raised the issue of the 800 IBRC workers who have temporary contracts. Some of them will be transferred to NAMA. I hope that as many jobs as possible can be saved. We are not concerned about the executives and the people in IBRC who were part of the problem. We are concerned about the ordinary low to middle income staff workers who face an uncertain future.
On the night that we debated the promissory note changes late into the night, and the subsequent legislation that was passed when the bank was liquidated, agreements were put in place regarding contracts and redundancy terms. There was an agreement to a redundancy package of four weeks pay per year of service. Both agreements are now gone. The workers, who might be redundant, are now being offered the statutory redundancy. Last week the union concerned gave a presentation on the matter in the AV room at Leinster House. It was very good. It is important that we get a statement from the Minister for Finance, either through him attending here or via the Leader's office and his statement could be reported to the Seanad next week. I want an update on where the former and present workers in the bank stand.
On a similar note, some weeks I also called for this House to find a way to celebrate and mark the centenary of the 1913 Lock-out and asked that we would invite a senior trade union leader to the House as part of the centenary celebrations, which are taking place across the State. I wrote to the Committee on Procedure and Privileges, CPP, on the issue. It would be an important opportunity for this House to mark that event and invite a senior trade union leader to come into the House.
It is a question for the CPP.
A Senator
It was all agreed.
I ask for an update on that as well.
Next week, I will release the findings of a report based on research I have been doing on whether our public bodies are doing enough to support Irish producers and Irish jobs. It is an extensive report, which examines the number of Irish goods and services being used by State-funded bodies such as Departments, local authorities, and State agencies. I contacted 162 institutions, 75% of which replied, and this will be documented in the report.
The aim of the research is to give an accurate picture of the percentage of goods procured by State-funded bodies that are Irish, and if there is an interest in increasing that amount. As we all know, buying Irish creates jobs in Ireland, and we should look to State-funded bodies to kick-start that process because they are something over which we have some control.
I was contacted recently by a printer who had lost a contract to another Irish company that got the contract through a procurement process, but it transpired that although the company was Irish, the vast majority of the service was being sent to the United Kingdom to be completed. It appears that suppliers are finding ways around the social conscience argument in the procurement area. I will be pushing for the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Bruton, and the Minister of State, Deputy Hayes, to closely examine this area. It is an issue we could usefully debate in this House in the coming weeks.
I compliment our colleagues, Senator John Kelly and Senator John Whelan, and Noel Walsh, personal assistant to Senator John Kelly, for organising a very useful meeting yesterday in the audio visual room on the circumstances surrounding the tragic death of the late Fr. Niall Molloy, who was my local priest in Castlecoote, Fuerty, in 1985. A commitment was given by the then Deputies Pat Rabbitte and Alan Shatter that they would hold an inquiry into this matter if elected to Government. That commitment has not been honoured. I ask the Leader to arrange a discussion in the House with the appropriate Minister to honour a commitment he gave and which impressed the family of the late Fr. Niall Molloy, whose life was cut short at a very early age in Clara, County Offaly, by the alleged murder, and the alleged cover-up of his murder by the State. I compliment the late Veronica Guerin and Ms Gemma O'Doherty, senior feature writer with the Irish Independent, who is pursuing this issue. Justice has not been done for the late Fr. Niall Molloy, who was a man of the highest integrity. He was a priest in the diocese of Elphin who served as chaplain with the Army at home and abroad. His memory, integrity and innocence should be vindicated by this State. The State owes it to him and his family. I attended the meeting yesterday until I was called to a vote in the House at 3 p.m. I also had to attend for a debate with the Minister for Children, Deputy Fitzgerald. Now is the time for an explanation of the circumstances surrounding the case and of the question mark about Judge Frank Roe, the then President of the Circuit Court, taking the case when he knew the families involved.
Senator, sometimes you abuse your powers here. You are naming people-----
Frank is gone to his eternal reward.
With all due respect, you are a senior Senator in this House and a Senior Member of the Oireachtas but you sometimes take a step too far. Calling for an explanation about a member of the Judiciary is a step too far.
He is gone to his eternal reward.
I raise the concern about developments in the past 24 hours involving the Irish Examiner Group. I am sure all Members will join with me in hoping that it can trade out of its current difficulties. While we might be critical of the media and they might be critical of us, they play an important part in the democratic process. As the main national newspaper in the Munster region, it is important that the Irish Examiner would continue to trade and provide vital information to our citizens.
On the issue of junior doctors, which I raise constantly, in 2011, emergency legislation was rushed through the Oireachtas to allow junior doctors be brought here from Pakistan and India. We gave them two year contracts under the supervised division process. It now appears that once their two year contracts finish, they cannot be re-employed by the Health Service Executive.
I raise a particular issue where some hospitals are having difficulties employing people. I know of one hospital which is employing a registrar through an agency, which means the HSE is paying double the money it would normally pay for employing a doctor. There is a person who is finishing his two year contract in a supervised division who would be suitable to fill that vacancy but, unfortunately, the HSE is not entitled to employ that person.
I am concerned that on 1 July we will have to rush emergency legislation through the Houses to deal with this issue. It is an issue that we need to examine now, long before 1 July, rather than being forced to deal with it in an urgent manner later. I ask the Leader to raise this matter with the Minister for Health, that he would have a detailed discussion with the HSE, and that on 1 July we would know where we stand in terms of ensuring that all the medical staff vacancies in all hospitals are filled to allow us provide the comprehensive health care service the people deserve.
I join in the concern expressed by Senator Burke about the difficulties being experienced by the Irish Examiner. It is a very fine newspaper, and I would like to express my sympathy to the 12 printers who have lost their jobs. I am very glad that the Crosbie family trust has managed to execute a sophisticated manoeuvre that allowed it to acquire most of the titles, including the Irish Examiner and a number of provincial titles. It is important that we encourage good standards in print journalism, and we should have a debate on the media. I am critical of them, and I reserve the right to be critical of them. Standards have been driven down. That is one of the reasons the appetite for printed newspapers has decreased, as well as the impact of social media and so on.
I raise the attempted eviction of a woman from a house in which she had lived for 60 years near Croke Park. She and her daughter are living in the house. She is terminally ill with cancer, yet an attempt was made yesterday to throw her out on the street. We have this ridiculous prayer recited every morning here. As a Christian, I disapprove of it because it is humbug. Does anybody in this House think that Jesus Christ would throw a woman of a certain age and her daughter out on the street with nowhere to go? I commend her neighbours who joined in solidarity to prevent this, and it was prevented. She was in too frail a condition to be moved into the ambulance. That is a disgrace. It is a reproach to every public representative in this country. If I hear about this kind of thing going on anywhere near me in future, I will be down there doing my best to prevent it. It is also unconstitutional because one is required to take into account the public good. This Government has now given the go-ahead, at the behest of our European masters, to turf out more people. We have been told by the European Central Bank to kick them out onto the road. It is wrong.
I will end by making a positive suggestion, since the question of public consultation has been brought up. There was a moving briefing about the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the audio-visual room this morning. Perhaps the four groups could be invited by the Leader into the House, if the matter could be brought before the Committee on Procedure and Privileges. They are Trócaire, Concern, Christian Aid and another.
There are four of them, and it is important during the EU Presidency and during the period when we have a seat on the Human Rights Council of the United Nations that we move the idea forward. I thank the Leas-Chathaoirleach for indulging me.
We will not be sitting on International Women's Day. Child care and early intervention are areas close to every woman's heart. We had a great debate here with the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald, yesterday evening on the high-quality early years strategy and its economic benefits to the State. I link the debate with the issue raised by Senator Marc MacSharry - that is, the cutting of child benefit. We have two fine women in work in Deputy Joan Burton and Deputy Frances Fitzgerald. They have their heads screwed on and are working together in the right direction. The Perry preschool project research in America which followed children for 27 years showed the economic return to a state from investment in excellent, high-quality, universal preschool early child care and early family care intervention. There is an economic return to the State of seventeen to one. Every dollar invested yielded $17 per child to the State.
When one sees the children of Bono, the Smurfits and the O'Reillys entitled to the same child benefit as children who have to go to DEIS schools, one could say there have to be cuts. We have inherited a system where we have to ensure that the money is used in the best possible way for every child in Ireland, every mother in Ireland and every father in Ireland. Deputy Fitzgerald is working with Deputy Joan Burton. It was said that economists can now estimate in financial terms the short-term economic contribution of high-quality early-years intervention and the longer-term returns on investment. There are now several long-term studies which have demonstrated not only the benefit to children and parents but also to communities in terms of school dropout rates, welfare and crime prevention. An American economist was quoted on the Heckman curve, which should be looked at by everybody. Everybody should support the Minister and provide her with funding to ensure that she and her colleague, Deputy Joan Burton, can do what they want to do. The returns on human capital investment are greatest for the young because skill begets skill. Younger people have a longer horizon over which to recoup the fruits of the investment. It is not attractive for politicians to ensure that longer-term investment because Governments are only in office for five years. Delayed returns are not attractive for politicians, but this works. We must get behind the Ministers, who are good women with their heads on their shoulders in the right place.
It is often the case that our debates become polarised and non-productive. We have seen this in the urban-rural divide and the debate about public and private sector employment. There is a possibility that we are heading in that direction with education at the moment. I feel very privileged to have had my education from the Irish Christian Brothers before we had free education. If one did not have the fees to pay, the Christian Brothers still provided one with an education. The current debate on private schools versus State schools is heading in a direction that may not give great results. I worry when people ask if we should encourage private schools to come into the State system. One wonders what is meant by the word "encourage". Does it mean penalise them in order to bring them into line in a certain way? No one would suggest there is more intelligence or better education in one form of school as against another but is not right either to pursue the common denominator. That does not always give the best results. Recent debates are heading in that direction. If people want to obtain extra help and are able to pay for it, there is nothing particularly wrong with it. When we talk about the common denominator, we should remind ourselves that there is a grey line between socialism and communism.
In this case, we should pull back from polarisation and have a proper debate. The blame is on ourselves in a way. We have allowed the media to take over these debates before we have had any opportunity to discuss them. They should be discussed here in the Oireachtas. I support the call for an early discussion of this matter. It would be a pity if we were to set one type of education against another. What will happen will set teacher against teacher and pupil against pupil, which does not help education. It is certainly not a logical way to achieve any result in the current debate. I ask the Leader to consider providing for a debate at an early stage.
I highlight this morning a sector we are going to discuss in the coming weeks when the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation attends to discuss An Action Plan for Jobs. If I asked Senators this morning whether they would like to meet a group that represents 90,000 jobs across every parish in the country, they would all say they would love to. Those people were with us on Tuesday last at 2 p.m. at the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I do not understand why Senators were not allowed to attend or could not attend to meet RGDATA, whose members employ 90,000 people. They were extremely disappointed that only three Deputies attended and no Senator other than myself felt free to go down. I am sure there are reasons but I highlight the issue.
The retailers face great challenges. Without mentioning any names, I will point out that a large global retail giant with an Irish presence turns over €40 billion, while another global giant which might not appear to be as large turns over €45 billion. To these retailers, the Government is but a pimple on the back of the neck. Local retailers support 90,000 full-time jobs across the villages of Ireland and support local suppliers and communities. Every time a Senator spends €1 in a local shop, 32 cent is spent back in the local community. That may not mean a lot, but if I spend €400 in a local shop, €130 goes back into the local community. I am wearing the green jersey, which the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Deputy Simon Coveney, would not like because we are Europeans. We are in a bad state and must support Ireland and Irish retailers.
I invite Senators to talk to me about this before the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation comes to the House. I am passionate about it. Let us enter into debate. One issue involved is labelling. Some Senators today will want to buy Irish chicken or smoked salmon. Unfortunately, the current labelling regime allows a producer to get a piece of chicken from Thailand, dip it in breadcrumbs and label it as having been produced in Ireland. It is no more Irish than the back of my cardigan, which was not produced in Ireland. The same issue arises with smoked salmon. Was it caught here or just smoked here? Coming full circle to horses and cattle, we must clarify labelling. Many consumers are blaming retailers, but it is not their fault. They are trying to represent and sell a beautiful product. Good morning.
I agree with Senator Mary Ann O'Brien on labelling. I am not a member of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine but I certainly would have liked to meet the representatives of RGDATA. I support their cause. I have the honour of having been nominated to the Seanad by that body since I came to the House 16 years ago. I feel for its members in respect of the 90,000 employed in the sector. I feel for them in so many regards, but there are other ways of dealing with the issue. I am sure the Leader will explain why Senators did not feel obliged to attend the joint committee. It may have been a clash with the Order of Business, but I do not know as I was paired due to my attendance in Letterkenny at the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly.
I wish Mr. Tim Vaughan, the editor of the Irish Examiner, and all of the staff well. I agree with the rescheduling and hope it will be successful for everyone involved. It is a wonderful newspaper which is widely read throughout the south and we would not want to see it suffer or jobs lost.
I could not be present yesterday owing to other commitments at the briefing on the Fr. Molloy case, but some of the people involved, including Ms Gemma O'Doherty, have been in touch with me and I hope to meet them. A great deal of information has come to light since the incident. As I think Senator David Norris said, there was a cover-up.
It was not me who said it.
I apologise. It was somebody else. It appears that there was a cover-up, which could be clarified very quickly because new information has come to light. I support those who want to see justice done and wish them well in that regard.
I would like to be associated with the good wishes extended to the Irish Examiner. As a former columnist for the paper, I have happy memories of my engagement with its staff.
It is important that the promise of an inquiry into the death of Fr. Niall Molloy is kept. I attended the very informative briefing yesterday, at which Ms Gemma O'Doherty spoke and I said that as a member of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, I would support the proposal that the committee take up the matter. The Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Pat Rabbitte, and the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Alan Shatter, made a promise. I mentioned another promise last week about the Galway hospice. Promises must mean something. A commitment was given and that inquiry should take place. We have spent a lot of time in Ireland talking about miscarriages of justice in other jurisdictions where innocent people went to jail, but it is also a miscarriage of justice when somebody dies and there is no proper investigation and trial. It seems that there is more than a prima facie case to support this claim. Our commitment to and pride in the justice system mean that we must have an inquiry into the matter.
Like many people, I was disturbed to learn about the extent of the pest problem in the three public hospitals in County Galway. The account of mice, flies and rats in Portiuncula Hospital and University College Hospital Galway is helpfully detailed by the Connacht Tribune. It reads like the hold of Noah's Ark and is a real issue. We missed the opportunity during the boom years to develop our hospital infrastructure properly. Now we learn about poor quality food being served in hospitals at a time when people need good nutrition in order to recover, as well as about a pest problem that is linked with hygiene. There is a huge cost incurred in pest control, on which it would be good to hear from the Minister for Health. It is important that public confidence in our hospitals is high. It is not edifying to learn about flies in the kitchen of one hospital and mice in the emergency unit of another. It is not where we should be in the provision of health care in the 21st century.
I, too, support the call for an inquiry into the death of Fr. Niall Molloy, if we are to have total confidence in the justice system. There were glaring difficulties in the case which need to be addressed.
I also support the call by my colleague Senator Colm Burke for the Minister for Health to clarify the position on junior doctors in advance of 1 July. There is obviously a concern that the HSE does not have the matter sufficiently in hand and if we are to have confidence in the health system, we need to address that issue as a matter of urgency.
Earlier in the week I welcomed the increase in the number of visitors to the country and applauded the communities that were doing so much to plan major events for The Gathering. Fáilte Ireland, hotels and restaurants and the hospitality sector generally are doing their best to make the country welcoming, but there is a major blot on the landscape. There is an appalling amount of litter in the countryside, particularly on motorways, which does not project a good image. I call on the local authorities to take the matter in hand. Tidy Towns and village committees are doing tremendous work, but they need the support of local authorities, particularly along the main arterial motorways. It projects a horrible image. As one heads out of Dublin towards Galway, just beyond Heuston Station, for several miles there is an appalling amount of litter along the motorway. I call on the relevant local authority to take the matter in hand because I hope hundreds of thousands of people will visit the country. If we travel to other countries on the Continent or to the United States, we do not see the amount of litter on streets and motorways that we see here. This issue needs to be tackled. I hope the community employment schemes and so on could be used to help tackle this matter because staff numbers in local authorities have reduced significantly in recent years. I ask the Leader to raise this issue with the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government.
I support Senator Mary Ann O'Brien's words on food labelling, especially on Irish food. There is a huge amount of work to be done in that regard. I imagine it is for the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine to do it. It is not just a question of identifying Irish food and putting customers' minds at rest, it is also a question of using "best before" instead of "use by" when it comes to the date used. There are other aspects too which may require new food labelling legislation. There is a danger that to a significant extent the European Union rules what we can do. At some point we have to stand up and say this is in our interests and that we must do something about it. I know that Senator Mary Ann O'Brien arranged a visit here last week by the retailers who were concerned about customers asking could they trust them. Retailers have to rely on somebody they can trust and food labelling is one direction in which we can go in achieving this.
I must declare an interest - I am involved in a group for crowd funding and attended a meeting this morning. I brought up the question of crowd funding to finance small businesses. It has been used in Britain for ten or 15 years and the concept has been embraced in America. A large number of people can each put a small amount of money into small businesses and, I suppose, even large businesses. It is called linked finance, but it is part of what we call crowd funding. We have talked about during the years and it is being launched this morning. I fully support it because it is worthwhile and a reminder of the work we can do in this House in drawing attention to things that are happening in other parts of the world from which we can benefit.
Senator Marc MacSharry referred to the proposed cuts to and the taxing of maternity benefit. Until 2012 when an employee continued to be paid by her employer in full while on maternity leave and, based on her PRSI contributions, was entitled to maternity benefit from the Department of Social Protection, the non-taxation of maternity benefit resulted in such an employee having greater net take-home pay for the period of maternity benefit. That was never the intention of the scheme and the taxing of maternity benefit will address that issue.
Senator Ivana Bacik mentioned bringing Ministers into the House for updates and progress reports on their first two years in government. We will certainly try to have that debate with several Ministers in the coming months. The Senator also said her Equality (Amendment) Bill would be introduced next week.
Senator Terry Brennan called for a debate on planning. We have had several debates on this subject, but we can certainly arrange another with the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government.
Senator Sean D. Barrett mentioned the death of Sir George Quigley. There is no doubt that he was an outstanding civil servant for many years. All Members of the House would like to convey their sympathy to his wife.
Senators Aideen Hayden and Labhrás Ó Murchú called for a debate on the education, in particular the future of private schools.
The Minister for Education and Skills will be in the House following the conclusion of the Order of Business but I will try to arrange a debate on that specific subject in early course.
Senator Cullinane spoke about the IBRC workers, which he also raised on the Order of Business on Tuesday. The Senator also raised the issue of commemorating the 1913 Lockout. That matter was brought to the Committee on Procedure and Privileges and it was agreed that we would have somebody in to address the House on that.
Senator Noone referred to the importance of State bodies supporting Irish companies and buying Irish produce, a theme which Senator Mary Ann O'Brien also mentioned. Senator Noone will introduce a report on that matter in the coming weeks.
Senators Leyden, Coghlan, Mullen, Mullins and others raised the matter of the alleged murder of Fr. Niall Molloy and the need to establish an inquiry to determine the full facts in that regard. It is essential that the full facts be established and I will certainly bring the matter to the attention of the Minister for Justice and Equality and find out the updated position.
Senators Colm Burke and Mullins raised issues concerning junior doctors, the difficulties they face when their two-year contracts expire and the need for the Minister to clarify the position before 1 July. I presume Senator Colm Burke will make representations to the Minister on that matter but I will certainly assist in that respect if he wishes me to do so.
Senators Norris, Colm Burke and others raised the developments in the Irish Examiner group and the importance of maintaining good standards in print journalism. Senator Norris also mentioned that he was at a meeting this morning regarding the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He might write a note on that matter to the Seanad Public Consultation Committee and ask if it could be dealt it by that committee. I am sure it would consider that matter.
Senator Keane spoke about the importance of preschool education and early intervention. We had an excellent debate on that subject with the Minister, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald, in the House yesterday. I compliment all the contributors to that important debate. Senator Mary Ann O'Brien mentioned the Action Plan for Jobs. We will have a debate on that in the House in the coming weeks.
A question was asked about why Senators were not allowed attend yesterday's meeting of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Food and the Marine. I remind Members that the House unanimously supported a motion that Senators would not attend meetings of Oireachtas joint committees when such a committee was to take place during the Order of Business, sponsored by Senator Norris and others, a few weeks ago. That was a unanimous decision of the House. I believe some Senators have chosen to ignore it. If that is what they wish to do, that is what they wish to do, but they are not being told not to attend them. It was a unanimous decision of the House that was taken because it was felt that the primacy of the Order of Business was not being observed, especially in the joint committees, because although the committees are suspended when votes are called in the Dáil, they are not suspended when votes are called in the Seanad. That is the reason the House unanimously decided not to attend committees during the Order of Business. I ask Members to examine their consciences and see what they want to do. If they do not want to attend the committees they do not need to, but if they want to go to them that is their prerogative. I am only reminding them of the unanimous decision of the House in that respect.
I note the points made by Senator Mary Ann O'Brien on RGDATA, which is an important body. Supporting Irish products and Irish producers is very important. Like Senator Quinn, she mentioned the question of labelling, which has been raised in this House on a number of occasions. The Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine attended an important conference on food safety yesterday. Perhaps I could arrange for him to come to the House to discuss food safety, the horsemeat problem and the Common Agricultural Policy. There are a number of items we would like him to discuss in the House, but he is in Brussels a good deal of the time dealing with a number of these issues. I will endeavour to arrange for him to come to the House to discuss the subjects the Members have raised on the Order of Business today and previously.
Senator Mullen spoke about the pest problem in hospitals in Galway. Public confidence in our hospitals is essential. This is a matter with which the HSE and HIQA will deal and I believe they have dealt with it already. Senator Mullen also raised the issue of litter on our motorways and the fact that it projects a very poor image of our country, about which there is no question. Local authorities can act and have acted in a number of areas. We must remind people who litter the country by dumping litter out of car windows and in many other ways that this is unacceptable. We must have strong penalties in place for people who litter. Local authorities have a difficult job in that regard.
Senator Quinn raised the issue of crowd funding, which has been mentioned on a number of occasions at our public consultation committee. We all support the Senator's efforts in that regard.
Order of Business agreed to.
Sitting suspended at 11.30 a.m. and resumed at 11.45 a.m.