It is proposed to take No. 10, motion re report of the Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality on the proposal for a Council regulation on the establishment of the European public prosecutor's office COM (2013) 534; No. 11, motion re appointment of ordinary member to the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission; No. 23, statements on pre-European Council meeting of 24-25 October; No. 3, Local Government Bill 2013 - Second Stage (Resumed); and No. 24, Road Traffic (No. 2) Bill 2013 - Second Stage (Resumed). It is proposed, notwithstanding anything in Standing Orders, that Nos. 10 and 11 shall be decided without debate and the proceedings in respect of No. 23 shall, if not previously concluded, be brought to a conclusion after 65 minutes and the following arrangements shall apply: the statements made by the Taoiseach and the main spokespersons for Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin and the Technical Group, who shall be called upon in that order and who may share their time, shall not exceed 15 minutes in each case; and a Minister or Minister of State shall be called upon to make a statement in reply that shall not exceed five minutes. Private Members' business shall be No. 121, motion re older citizens, resumed, to conclude at 9 p.m., if not previously concluded.
Order of Business
Is the proposal for dealing with Nos. 10 and 11 agreed to?
It is not agreed. I seek clarification on No. 11. I do not understand what it is about. The Taoiseach knows that Sinn Féin is not even represented on the commission for reasons that are beyond me. I understand that an Opposition Deputy will be replaced by a Government Deputy. Surely, fairness would see an Opposition Deputy as a replacement, particularly given that our party is excluded from the commission.
In this case, a Deputy has resigned from the commission and is being replaced by a Deputy from the same party.
Who is that?
Deputies Catherine Byrne and Durkan.
So, it is not the Opposition.
Is there any need to put the question? Is it agreed?
My point is that Sinn Féin is not even on the commission.
That is a different issue. This proposal is on a replacement.
Is the proposal for dealing with No. 23 agreed to? Agreed.
In recent weeks, access to general practitioners, GPs, and medical cards has been a burning issue. Many will have been moved by the testimony of the Jack and Jill Children's Foundation to the health committee in respect of children who are very ill, many with life-limiting conditions. The majority of people would agree that medical cards should be available to children irrespective of age.
I am sorry, but where are we going? On what legislation is this?
The health (general practitioner medical service) Bill.
I ask the Leader of the Opposition to wait a second. Everyone is shouting.
It relates to forthcoming legislation. Many would agree that children with disabilities or special needs should be the first cohort to get access to medical cards irrespective of age. When will the health (general practitioner medical service) Bill, which I understand will provide GP services only to those aged under five years, be forthcoming and will it take into consideration my comments? The first phase should be for children who really need it. I am referring to cochlear implants, children with the Jack and Jill Children's Foundation and children across the board whose medical cards have been removed and of whom we have had experience in recent weeks. This situation has highlighted sad and difficult cases and parents and families should not need to go through it.
The legislation is expected this session.
This session.
This session. As Deputy Martin rightly pointed out and as other Deputies have raised about particular cases that have come into the national media, anybody would look at these cases and say that of course the situations of those children should be helped. I expect they will be. When the move was made to centralise all of the medical card applications, it brought the same assessment right across the board. It is how one then applies the circumstances from a discretionary point of view that matters. Clearly, there has been a need to be able to communicate what is involved in this from both sides. The Deputy knows this himself. Children in need of attention or particular facilities should be able to get them.
On the move towards universal health insurance, the first 240,000 under five year olds will have free GP care. Numbers of those children already have full medical cards because of their particular medical circumstances. It is a matter that the Deputy can validly raise on the Bill when it comes before the House.
Ón reachtaíocht atá fógraithe, the Social Welfare Bill 2013, the scrapping of the telephone allowance is not contained therein. In two budgets in a row, the Government has taken €271 from the annual budgets of those aged over 70 years, people with disabilities-----
That is not really for the Order of Business.
-----and carers. Why is there no legislation on this issue?
The Social Welfare Bill is due for debate in the House this week. The Deputy will have a chance to raise all of those matters.
It is not in the Bill. That is the point that I am making.
In respect of all of these matters, the Deputy can raise them in the course of the Social Welfare Bill.
Why is it not in the legislation? That is not an answer.
It is not in the Bill. How will the Government introduce this provision if it is not in the legislation?
The Government will sneak it in through regulation.
The Taoiseach is stumped.
The Bill is on this week.
It is not a legislative matter.
I call Deputy Durkan.
I am sorry, but the Taoiseach did not answer me.
There is nothing new about that.
He does not have the answer.
He does not know it.
The Bill is on this week and the Deputy will have plenty of time to air his concerns.
How will it be introduced?
That is no answer whatsoever.
Obviously, it is not required in the legislation.
Thanks very much, a Cheann Comhairle.
On promised legislation, I wish to inquire into the proposal to bring to the House as early as possible the retention of records Bill, which covers the commission on child abuse, the residential redress board and the Residential Institutions Review Committee. Their records are important, given the subject matters concerned. Have its heads been discussed and when is the Bill likely to be before the House?
The adoption (tracing and information) Bill will provide for an information and tracing service to applicants seeking information about adoptions on a statutory basis. This is equally important promised legislation. Is it anticipated to be before the House at an early date and, if so, when?
The heads of the Deputy's first request have not been cleared by Government yet, so that will be next year before that comes through. In respect of the adoption Bill, I understand from the Minister that there are quite a number of constitutional issues, mostly relating to privacy, that have been raised. They have to be dealt with before it can proceed further. So, we are probably talking about 2014 as well.
I thank the Taoiseach.
What is the status of the workplace relations Bill? Has it been agreed by the Government? It is on the right to collective bargaining.
I am unsure as to the status of the housing Bill. Is it on clár C of the legislative list? As the Taoiseach is aware, the Government has announced approximately 4,500 new homes. In my constituency of Dublin Bay North, 5,000 families are on the housing list. From the Taoiseach's own work in Mayo, is he aware of-----
This matter is not on the Order of Business.
-----the scale of the housing crisis that we are facing?
Deputies would know that from Mayo.
Many families have been homeless for months and years on end.
I can confirm that the workplace Bill is very well advanced and we expect it to be published this session. As regards the housing Bill, quite a lot of work has been done on that legislation in the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government. It is expected to come before Government but I do not think it will make it this year.
I am well aware of the housing pressures in the greater Dublin area and there are quite a number of sites for which permission has been granted for development. It is a question of being able to provide funding for good contractors and developers, as well as some investment in the infrastructure in respect of a number of those sites. That matter is under active consideration.
As a result of the announcement of €10 million in the budget for the remediation of properties with pyrite, can the Taoiseach confirm whether the pyrite levy Bill is being withdrawn or is it dead in the water? This fund will go nowhere near to addressing the problems. It will cost roughly €30,000 to €60,000 for each home, so only 250 homes could be delivered based on the €10 million fund.
We will not be proceeding with a levy on quarries with regard to the pyrite matter. The €10 million allocation, which the Government decided to provide following an investigation by the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Deputy Hogan, and the late Minister of State, Shane McEntee, is the commencement of a process of accepting applications to deal with pyrite. We fully understand that €10 million will not be enough, so it will have to be followed through again next year and probably the year after. It is a case of identifying houses that are really caught in this pyrite situation.
Okay.
We are not proceeding with the Bill to which the Deputy referred. The €10 million is a start of the process so that we can take applications and follow them through.
When can we expect the criminal justice (corruption) Bill to be published? It is to consolidate and reform all the relevant legislation - the Prevention of Corruption Acts 1889 to 2010 - in one statute.
I do not have a date for the publication of that Bill. The heads have been referred to the Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality for discussion. The Minister expects to see the committee's reflections in due course. The heads of the Bill have gone to the committee for its analysis as part of the change to engage more people in drafting legislation.
My question concerns housing legislation and homelessness. Over the past year, homelessness in Dublin has increased by 88%. The Government's commitment is to end homelessness by 2016. Will there be a particular aspect of housing legislation to deal with the issue? Last weekend, Fr. Peter McVerry spoke of the need to invest in the provision of housing for those who are homeless.
I do not think there is specific legislation, although the Government supports agencies and organisations that deal with homelessness. I have heard different reports from people involved in the sector who know more about the matter than I do. The number of homeless people on the streets includes those in short-term homelessness and others who have been homeless for longer periods. It is a matter that concerns me and I would like to think that we can call the agencies and organisations together to see how best we can achieve the objective of eliminating homelessness by the date we have set.
I wish to ask about two items of promised legislation. As regards the criminal justice (victims' rights) Bill, it has come to light that the Government's investment in the Garda transport fleet is €6 million a year, which is woefully inadequate.
Where are we going now? We are dealing with promised legislation.
The guards cannot go anywhere without transport.
I am referring to the criminal justice (victims' rights) Bill.
That is fine.
How can we have justice for people if the gardaí cannot go out to see them?
We will get an answer for the Deputy on that Bill.
I have one more item.
Does it concern legislation?
Yes, the Health Service Executive (financial matters) Bill. Why is the Government continuing to cut community-based supports for persons with disabilities that are contained in this Bill? We have had a reduction of 450,000 home help hours.
The Deputy cannot go on with this.
Some €1.7 million was also cut from the home care help scheme.
The Deputy can ask when the legislation is due, but he does not need to make a speech about it.
They are salient points.
I have to build it up a bit, a Cheann Comhairle.
I know you do, but not on the Order of Business.
In fairness, it is so that you know exactly what I am talking about.
I know exactly what you are talking about, do not worry.
I also want the Taoiseach to understand what I am talking about.
He understands all right. We hear it every morning.
Whether he learns from it or not is another thing.
That is all right back home, but there is no construction up here.
I fully understand what Deputy Healy-Rae is on about. I can confirm that preliminary work has been done on the criminal justice Bill. I do not yet have a publication date but that work is proceeding. I can also confirm that moneys have been made available by the Minister for Justice and Equality to the Garda Commissioner for the purchase of further vehicles for the Garda Síochána, including motorcycles.
Maybe he could get the helicopter brought down too.
When does the Taoiseach expect to introduce legislation that will change the eligibility limits for the over-70s medical cards? I note that it is intended to reduce the threshold to €900 for married couples and €500 for a single person. The threshold for a married couple is usually double that of a single person, so why not in this case?
Does the Deputy have a question on legislation?
How many people in the over-70 category are expected to lose their medical cards as a result of these new guidelines?
I ask the Deputy to respect the fact that there are other Deputies waiting to put questions.
I am asking questions that the public are concerned about and want answers to.
The Deputy can ask as many questions as he likes but not on the Order of Business. The Deputy should deal only with legislation.
That legislation will be produced shortly. In respect of the numbers, anybody over 70 who loses a medical card will have access to a GP card. I cannot give the Deputy an accurate figure.
Roughly.
A figure of approximately 35,000 has been referred to.
I am delighted the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs is here because I want to ask about the Children First guidelines. I also want to ask about the children's referendum that was passed. There was a High Court challenge and there is now an appeal going to the Supreme Court for a stay on the referendum decision. I would like to know where the Minister intends going now. There was no debate in the House on the money that was misappropriated.
What is the Deputy talking about?
I am talking about Children First and the children's rights Bill.
Deputy McGrath is aware that the High Court dismissed the petition. I do not have any further comment to make on it at this time.
I am aware of that and I was actually there, but there is now an appeal to the Supreme Court.
Then we have to leave it to them.
I am asking when the commencement date is and where is it going to go.
We do not know about the appeal. We do not control the courts.
Is it "Dúirt bean liom go ndúirt bean léi"?
I want to know the current status of the Central Bank (consolidation) Bill. We are allowing the banks to run amok, throw people into jail and send the sheriffs to arrest them.
Is there a date for that Bill?
We do not yet have a publication date.
People are being treated with total contempt, as we are in this House.
You are not. You get more than your fair share.
No. The Taoiseach will not answer any questions.
I have a question on promised legislation in light of the lengthening housing waiting list, particularly in major cities. I welcome the Taoiseach's promise in the budget that money will be made available to build local authority housing. It is great to see that in my own native city of Galway, for the first time in five years, a new estate has been constructed. That is good news. Given the commitment in the budget concerning the housing (miscellaneous provisions) Bill, will money be made available urgently to ensure that local authority houses are built?
The Taoiseach has answered that question already.
It will have a two-pronged effect - first, to get people back to work and, second, to get people off the housing waiting lists.
When is that Bill due? I think that question was answered already.
It is due early next year. I thank Deputy Grealish for his comments. We are well aware of the pressure building up for public housing in various parts of the country. It is a matter of priority that the Government is focusing on.
Notwithstanding what the Taoiseach said to Deputy Ellis about the pyrite levy Bill, can he clarify the initial proposition that appeared on the A-list whereby the insurance and quarrying sectors would be levied in respect of the cost of remediating such properties around the country? Can we take it that the Bill is being removed from the A-list? Has the Government decided that taxpayers will carry the full cost of this remediation, as distinct from the building sector?
As I told Deputy Ellis, the Bill will not be proceeded with in so far as imposing a levy on quarries around the country is concerned. However, there will be legislation to establish the pyrite resolution board, which will comply with the initial sum of €10 million allocated for remediation.
We need to ascertain the exact number of homes affected by pyrite and make arrangements to deal with the situation over the next two to three years. I understand that in respect of houses built during the past five years the pyrite impact might not yet be evident. However, there are tests that can be carried out to verify this.
We are all aware of the harrowing story of the non-national child found wandering the streets of Dublin, whose only means of conversing with the authorities was the drawing pictures of a sexual nature, which raises serious concerns in regard to the trafficking of children into Ireland. When will the Government bring forward the Immigration, Residence and Protection Bill?
I understand the Bill is at Committee Stage. I agree with the Deputy's comments in regard to the poor unfortunate young girl found wandering in O'Connell Street. If it is any consolation at all, the number of children being trafficked into this country has decreased. As I said, the Bill is currently at Committee Stage and will be proceeded with as quickly as possible.
As per the Order for today, No. 23, Statements on Pre-European Council Meeting 24-25 October will be taken later. This meeting presents an important opportunity for meaningful discussion between the Irish Parliament and the European Union. The 65 minutes allocated for statements on this issue is divided between Government and Opposition Members. I have been in the House previously during such discussions which traditionally have been meaningless and window-dressing. It is important that Members of the Dáil have an opportunity to engage in meaningful discussion-----
This is not relevant to the Order of Business.
Sorry, a Cheann Comhairle-----
The Deputy is not allowed to raise these issues on the Order of Business. This was a matter for the Order of Business earlier.
The German Minister for Finance, Mr. Wolfgang Schäuble, had the temerity to say on our budget day-----
I appreciate all of that but I ask for the Deputy's co-operation.
-----that Ireland is fine. I resent that and said so in this House during the four minutes allocated to me on the day. It is wrong that he should make that gratuitous comment about Ireland on budget day, which is actually unfounded. There is no evidence to support it.
I must ask the Deputy to resume his seat. I call Deputy Niall Collins.
Deputy Mathews is correct. He should be allowed to contribute to the debate.
Perhaps Deputy Martin will share five minutes of his time with the Deputy.
Maybe the Taoiseach will do so.
Will the Taoiseach clarify if legislation is required to amend GP contracts in respect of the roll-out of free GP care for children under five years of age, as announced in the budget?
There will be discussions between the Minister and IMO in regard to implementation of the scheme. New contracts will have to be drawn up.
Will new legislation be required?
We are dealing now with promised legislation.
If legislation is required, it will be drafted. The discussions in regard to how the scheme will be implemented must take place first.
I welcome that the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Fitzgerald is here as my question to the Taoiseach is in regard to the deadline of 31 October in respect of Russian adoptions, which date is rapidly approaching.
The Deputy cannot raise that matter on the Order of Business.
Will the Adoption Bill 2010 be amended to address the concerns of Irish parents seeking to adopt Russian children?
The Deputy can raise the matter as a Topical Issue or by way of parliamentary question. If he tables a request for a debate I will consider it.
The deadline of 31 October is rapidly approaching.
The Deputy cannot raise that matter on the Order of Business. Is legislation promised?
A small number of the cases involved are very sensitive. Any changes to the Adoption Bill 2010 will have implications for everybody. The Minister is considering the position.
The Taoiseach mentioned earlier that the pyrite levy Bill will not be proceeded with.
We are not having a debate on the issue now.
Will the Taoiseach indicate to the House the reasons for the Government's decision to not proceed with the levy on quarries?
I suggest the Deputy raise the matter by way of parliamentary question.
It is important.
It is not a matter for the Order of Business.
The House has been told on numerous occasions that legislation to provide for a levy would be introduced. It now appears the legislation will not be introduced. It is right and proper that the Taoiseach clarify the matter.
I must ask the Deputy to respect the Chair. That is not a matter relevant to the Order of Business.
It is based on legal advice.
It is very conflicting.