Joe Higgins
Ceist:1. Deputy Joe Higgins asked the Taoiseach when the last meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [31777/15]
Ceisteanna - Questions (Resumed)
Cabinet Committee Meetings
Joe Higgins
Ceist:`2. Deputy Joe Higgins asked the Taoiseach when the last meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place.
Micheál Martin
Ceist:3. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Taoiseach if the Cabinet committee on health met to discuss health services during September 2015. [32869/15]
Gerry Adams
Ceist:4. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach when the Cabinet committee on health last met. [42221/15]
Gerry Adams
Ceist:5. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach the number of meetings of the Cabinet committee on health that have taken place in 2015 to date. [42222/15]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:6. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach when the last meeting of the Cabinet committee on health took place. [42433/15]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 to 6, inclusive, together.
The Cabinet committee on health last met on 2 November. The Cabinet committee also met on 13 July and 29 September.
There have been eight meetings of the committee to date in 2015.
The committee met on 2 November and 13 July.
And 29 September.
I presume the other five meetings were before July-----
Yes.
-----if there were eight meetings.
Correct.
The health situation is in chaos, morale is at an all-time low and a fundamental decision has been taken by the Government to end the implementation of the universal health insurance scheme, which was a pillar of Government policy for the past five years and of the Fine Gael Party for the past decade. The programme for Government was consistently very clear over the past five years that universal health insurance would be introduced. We have had an announcement from the Minister for Health, Deputy Varadkar, that the scheme will never be introduced, following a report by the Economic and Social Research Institute stating it would cost families and children thousands of euro more, and would cost the country billions, with no great outcomes.
In many ways I am surprised there was only one meeting, which was on 2 November. Prior to this, the Taoiseach will recall that on Leaders' Questions and the Order of Business I consistently asked about the universal health insurance scheme and the legislation on it. The Taoiseach kept telling me it would be introduced and would happen. It seems the meetings have dried up in the latter half of the year despite the fact a fundamental reversal of policy was under way and being considered, and the only issue was when to announce it. The Minister took his opportunity when other events were grabbing the headlines to try to slip through the reversal and fundamental U-turn on Government health policy. Will the Taoiseach indicate why there has been only one meeting of the Cabinet committee on health since 13 July given the fact such a fundamental policy U-turn and change was under way and given the fact the emergency departments in our hospitals have been consistently reporting record numbers of patients on trolleys?
Waiting times and waiting lists have gone through the roof and spiralled out of control in almost all hospitals across the country. We are facing the first national nurses' strike in a long time as a consequence of the chaotic, unsafe and very worrying practices under way in our overcrowded emergency departments, the circumstances and conditions that have been created as a result of that overcrowding and the low morale within the health service. In all these circumstances, why has there been only one meeting of the Cabinet committee on health since 13 July?
Does the Taoiseach agree there has been no meeting because the system is not working? All we have witnessed has been decline and more decline in terms of the quality of service and the working conditions of doctors, nurses and other health care staff in hospitals across the country. Is the paucity of meetings in the latter half of the year reflective of the Minister going it alone and not really taking heed of the wider Cabinet? I recall the Taoiseach saying two years ago that he was taking charge of the health service himself, but he abandoned that fairly quickly. Whatever system is in place in terms of the Cabinet sub-committees, the lack of any regular meetings in the latter half of the year more or less stands up the view that from a policy perspective, nobody really knows what is going on now at the heart of Government and that the entire programme for Government on health lies in tatters as a consequence.
I do not accept that at all. The Government has been absolutely united in making the decisions that enabled us to be recognised as the fastest-growing economy in Europe for the second year running, to have created, by virtue of people's ability, more than 135,000 jobs, and to have driven the engine that is providing the resources to fund the public services we need. The Government set out its stall very clearly in undertaking to introduce universal health insurance. We then had the courage to face up to the situation when it became clear the specific model of universal health insurance was going to prove too costly. When political parties or governments decide to do things and have big ideas, it sometimes transpires that the nature of the specific issue turns out to be different but, because of a sense of allegiance to or pride in the original idea, they drive on through. This was the case, for instance, with the setting up of the Health Service Executive. That seemed to be a very good idea but it was foisted on top of a health board system that was not able to absorb it. Another example is the PPARS system, which went out of control. When the ESRI came forward with its analysis of the cost of the particular model of universal health insurance we had proposed to introduce, this Government said clearly we will not introduce that particular model because it would be too costly.
The Taoiseach is chancing his arm.
This question is being stretched too far.
The Government remains very committed to a model of universal health care that will provide patients with affordable, quality care at all times. That service will be funded through a different model of universal health insurance from what was originally proposed. Building on the reforms that are already in place, we will continue to move away from the wasteful, inefficient and unfair approach to health service provision we inherited some years ago. Moreover, it must be done in a way that is affordable to both taxpayers and the buyers of health insurance. Deputy Martin is well aware there are different models of universal health insurance and that the ultimate cost of insurance to families and the Exchequer depends upon the nature and type of model chosen and the level of subsidy to be provided by the State. The Government commissioned the ESRI to examine the financial implications of implementing a particular model of universal health insurance based on data from 2013, a time when health budgets had been cut significantly and systems had not been put in place to control costs more effectively. The high costs for health insurance customers estimated by the ESRI are not acceptable either now or at any time in the future. The ESRI report vindicates the Government's decision not to rush into the implementation of that particular model of universal health insurance.
Did the Taoiseach use the word "rush"?
Indeed, it is clear from the ESRI report that the foundations are not in place to meet the Government's original timeline of introducing universal health insurance by 2019. Those foundations include sufficient capacity to satisfy unmet demand and the provision of enhanced primary and social care. The introduction of free GP care for under sixes and over 70s has been done seamlessly and is very much welcomed by the people who are benefiting from it. The next move as part of that strategy is to provide free GP care to the children of all working families. We also intend to put in place reformed structures to replace the HSE with hospital groups and trusts, community health care organisations and other new structures. I look forward to the implementation of those hospital groups, under which the contracts for medical personnel will be with a group rather than an individual hospital and where the groups will have the capacity to evolve into trusts which will be able to make the decisions that reflect what they consider to be the best options for their hospitals in the years ahead. We intend, too, to introduce financial reforms and advance the Healthy Ireland and public health and patient safety agendas.
When all of those measures are completed, we will be able to compare the advantages and disadvantages of a number of funding options for universal health insurance. It is true to say that reform in the past was rushed and, as a result, serious mistakes were made, such as with the construction of the HSE in 2005. The intention of Government is to continue to provide a better health service for the Irish people and carry out further research on the models of universal health insurance, how they can be funded and what the subsidy should be. The decision on the exact nature of the model will be made by the next Government and implemented in the term after that.
Will the Taoiseach clarify whether the Cabinet committee on health met six times or eight times?
The committee's last three meetings were on 13 July, 29 September and 2 November. There have been eight meetings in the year to date.
I thank the Taoiseach. We are not allowed to discuss the business of the committee, but I am concerned with getting a handle on how it does its work and holds the Government to account. The Government's position on health, or at least what was outlined to us, was that we would see free GP care for all, an end to prescription charges, universal health insurance, abolition of the Health Service Executive, an end to trolley waits and an end to two-tier waiting lists. There were more details given but those are the highlights of the Government's health policy. One presumes the Cabinet committee on health meets to deal with all of these matters. Surely, in the course of its deliberations, it would have discussed the fact we have not seen free GP care for all, an end to prescription charges, universal health insurance, abolition of the HSE or an end to trolley waits. In fact, in November, the month in which the committee last met, the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation revealed there was a 4% increase in the numbers on trolleys, the figure being 7,407 admitted patients, and a 24% year-on-year increase, the total figure being 87,000 admitted patients.
That is a Croke Park full of citizens on trolleys. Of 29 emergency departments, 25 have increased overcrowding. Today, there are 401 citizens on trolleys, 27 of them in Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in my own constituency. We also have 2,000 fewer nurses. The Minister is making public statements, which include, for example, the proposal that hospital groups should be able to conduct business in the manner of semi-State companies, outside the constraints of public service rules. He also says he is going to scrap the universal health insurance plan because it could not work and it never could have worked. This Government has created chaos in the health service because its firm ideological position is not to have a universal public health service, but to privatise it and to have a for-profit system, as revealed by the Minister, outside the constraints of public service rules.
I will have to take the Deputy back to the question.
My instinct is to ask the Taoiseach - it will be ruled out of order, but I will ask him anyway - whether the committee considered any of those matters. The Taoiseach once talked, famously, about having a report card. As we approach the end of the year, if this committee had a report card, how would he mark it up? No free GP care for all, no end to prescription charges, no universal health insurance, no abolition of the HSE, no end to trolley waits and no end to two-tier waiting lists. Behind those statistics are, as I raised last week, the case of Denise and Jake Tuohy or Orlaith, a five week old baby girl. I am sure every Teachta Dála could raise equally poignant cases. I have already said to the Taoiseach previously in this type of discussion that I am not against this type of focused approach on co-ordinating the necessary priority at any given time, but surely this Cabinet committee on health, in its eight meetings, has not justified its own existence?
Deputy Adams spoke about the report card. The report card for Ireland reads of many things: unemployment down from 15.2% to 8.9%, employment up by 135,000-----
Two thousand fewer nurses.
-----interest rates down from 15% to less than 2%-----
Half a million people across the globe.
-----the deficit will be below 1% next year, the national debt is falling rapidly, confidence is rising, new companies are being formed, and people are returning home to take up jobs. The more people we have working, the less tax each will pay and the greater the engine we will have to invest in the provision of services, including in health.
Why has the Government not done it?
Sinn Féin's report card says abolish water charges, abolish property charges, increase income tax, drive down disposable income and drive jobs out of the country. The question the people will face in the spring-----
Yes. They are smarter than the Taoiseach thinks.
-----the central question for the Irish people, which will be the most important question to be answered for a very long time, is who they believe can keep this recovery going in the interest of the people.
A fair recovery.
Is it Sinn Féin's operation, which will increase income tax, drive jobs out of the place, drive down disposable income and assume that people will say "Of course, abolish all the property charges, abolish all the water charges, abolish everything else, and pay for nothing"?
Answer the question, for God's sake.
Deputy Adams mentioned the nurses' strike. I believe-----
Hold on a second. This is about a Cabinet sub-committee. It is not about-----
He has not even talked about health in his answer. He is neglecting the whole area.
There are other questions and I want to move on
He is at the church gate.
The INMO has given notice of strike action to take place in Beaumont Hospital, the Mercy Hospital in Cork, Tallaght hospital in Dublin, Cavan General Hospital, University Hospital Waterford, the Midlands Regional Hospital in Tullamore and Galway University Hospital on Tuesday, 15 December. I hope this can be avoided. It should be possible for health service management and the INMO to reach agreement on the key issues. Industrial action will not solve any problems. We have shared objectives: the delivery of patient care and the health and well-being of nursing staff working in the emergency departments.
Negotiations took place on Thursday at the Workplace Relations Commission and they are continuing until tomorrow. All parties are committed to intensive engagement in these negotiations so that a solution can be reached. If it is not reached by the close of business tomorrow, management will seek further talks on Thursday so that a comprehensive contingency plan can be put in place.
There are plans in place to deal with emergency department overcrowding. The numbers on trolleys are now down by 20% on the same period last year for each morning and the focus has to continue to be on working hard together to implement that plan. The Government recognises that bed capacity has to be increased. We have put in place related measures to make that happen, including an additional 450 beds, 129 of which were closed before and an additional 326. To date, 200 have been opened, with the rest to open over the next few weeks. I hope people can sit down and talk rationally about this in the interests of both the quality of facility the nurses have but particularly for the patients in their care. They do a very good job.
Is it not a fairly stinging indictment of the strategy and work of the health sub-committee and of this Government's policy on health that the nurses, who want to care for people, feel forced to go out on strike next week because of the utter disaster in emergency departments? Is that not just about the most serious indictment one can have? Today, according to Trolley Watch, there are 411 people on trolleys across the country, suffering that indignity when they should be in beds.
It is interesting that the Taoiseach uses the word "recovery". The 50,000 people who are waiting over a year on waiting lists to get into hospitals will not be recovering from the real physical pain or ailments they are suffering from because of an utterly unacceptable situation. Some people are waiting far longer than that. I am dealing with several cases of elderly people who have worked all their lives and who need hip replacements. It will take 18 months, but that is after they have managed to get a consultant's appointment to get on the list. In reality, people will have to suffer chronic pain for two and a half years. This situation is getting worse. There is no recovery for them, just pain. They cannot believe, when they hear the Taoiseach talk about recovery, that this is the reality they are suffering.
This sub-committee, in its strategy to resolve the mess that is our health service, has failed disastrously because the Government pursued this notion of universal health insurance, which it has now accepted is a fantasy that will never materialise. Those of us who said from the beginning that the health insurance model for solving the crisis in our health system was always going to be expensive and would not work have been vindicated. What we have asked all along is for the Government to look at the National Health Service single-tier model as the most effective way to deliver health care for everybody. It does not involve the profit-taking of private health insurance companies or private for-profit interests essentially sucking money and resources out of a health service. What we need is a not-for-profit universal national health system. That is how we will deliver the desperately needed health care to people on those lists and end the indignity of people sitting on trolleys for hours and days in our hospitals every day of the week.
I might say to the Deputy that-----
We are not having a broad discussion now in the House on this, please.
-----a great deal of progress is being made. The Government provided €51.4 million to deliver on the Minister's target of maximum waiting times of 15 months by the year end, and significant progress is being made. As of 3 December last, a total of 23,924 outpatient appointments and 3,549 inpatient or day case procedures are required to achieve the 15-month maximum waiting time by the end of December, that is, 27,473 in total. To put that in context, on 12 November 2015, the equivalent numbers were 39,374 for outpatients and 7,231 inpatients or day cases, or 46,605 cases in all.
The moratorium has been lifted and very significant numbers of nurses and medical personnel are employed now who were not employed last year. For instance, the number of applications for registration of nurses received at 1 July last was 974 and 1,841 at 31 October. That was an increase of 223% in July 2015 over the same period in 2014 and an increase of 139% in October 2015 over the same period in 2014.
The moratorium being lifted allows for the recruitment of professional nurses. In fact, I was speaking to a young graduate nurse the other day who had just qualified from UCD.
Had the Taoiseach two pints with her?
She made the point to me that, of the 200 nurses who qualified, 150 had been offered permanent employment in Ireland, which is a big change from what applied previously. Of the other 50, most, being young people, wanted to go to different countries for a number of years. I thought that the point she made, as one of 150 young professional nurses employed in hospitals throughout the country, was a significant expression of modern youthful enthusiasm to assist in the work of giving patients the very best care and attention.
While Deputy Boyd Barrett naturally will say that everything is deplorable, there is a great deal of beneficial activity going on. The Minister secured substantial funding over past year and we hope to continue the improvement.
It does not explain why they are going on strike.
It is the firm intention of Government to work towards the implementation of a single tier system to eliminate the inequitable two-tier system which has been around for many years. This new system is to be funded by universal health insurance but not the model that Government set out with the intention of implementing in the first place because it has been proven to be too costly for families and those who would buy health insurance in the first place.
We are now moving on to Question No. 7.
Can I ask a brief supplementary?
No. Those questions were about when the Cabinet health committee met. We have gone over the whole track of the health service and I am moving on now to Question No. 7.
I would make the point that somebody who tables a question gets the same treatment as somebody who does not even bother tabling one.
The three Deputies had questions tabled.
I do not think Deputy Boyd Barrett did.
He did. Let us get this straight. Deputies Higgins, Martin, Adams and Boyd Barrett had questions-----
Okay, I had two questions.
-----and everybody got a chance.
Official Engagements
Joe Higgins
Ceist:7. Deputy Joe Higgins asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his recent visits to the United States of America, and his meetings with officials there. [32853/15]
Gerry Adams
Ceist:8. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his visit to the United States of America in September 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33923/15]
Gerry Adams
Ceist:9. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his meeting with the former President of the United States of America, Mr. Bill Clinton; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33927/15]
Gerry Adams
Ceist:10. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his visit to Quinnipiac University in the United States of America; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33928/15]
Gerry Adams
Ceist:11. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his visit to the United Nations General Assembly; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33924/15]
Gerry Adams
Ceist:12. Deputy Gerry Adams asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his individual meetings with international leaders during his visit to the United Nations General Assembly; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33926/15]
Micheál Martin
Ceist:13. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Taoiseach the position regarding his address to the United Nations in September 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33971/15]
Micheál Martin
Ceist:14. Deputy Micheál Martin asked the Taoiseach the bilaterals he had while he attended the United Nations in September 2015; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [33973/15]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:15. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he will provide a report on his visit to the United Nations General Assembly in New York in the United States of America; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40155/15]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:16. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he had discussions regarding human rights abuses in Palestine while attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York in the United States of America; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40156/15]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:17. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach the leaders he met while attending the United Nations General Assembly in New York in the United States of America; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [40157/15]
Richard Boyd Barrett
Ceist:18. Deputy Richard Boyd Barrett asked the Taoiseach if he will report on his recent visit to the United States of America and the meetings he participated in while there; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42434/15]
I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 to 18, inclusive, together.
I made a short visit to the United States on 24 and 25 September. The main focus of the visit was my participation in the United Nations summit on sustainable development. Prior to this, on my arrival in New York on Thursday, 24 September, I travelled with my delegation to Connecticut for a number of engagements, including a visit to Quinnipiac University, on foot of a long-standing invitation from the university's president, Dr. John Lahey.
My visit to Quinnipiac began at the Great Hunger Museum, which has one of the world's largest collections of visual art, artefacts and printed materials relating to the Irish Famine. It also plays a crucial role in promoting public understanding of the Famine through a number of important educational outreach programmes to schools in the state of Connecticut and beyond. I recommend to all Irish people who happen to be in the vicinity of Quinnipiac to visit that outstanding exhibition which portrays different aspects of the Great Hunger in this country in a powerful way. I was honoured to be awarded an honorary degree from the university, which I accepted in honour of all those who lost their lives in the Great Hunger, and those who sought refuge from it in the USA and elsewhere.
I then addressed an invited audience comprising university leaders and benefactors, members of the Irish-American community as well as representatives of business, community, cultural and sporting groups. I was pleased to meet members of the region's vibrant Irish-American community after the ceremony.
Before leaving Connecticut, I visited the corporate headquarters of United Technologies Corporation, UTC, and met the company's senior leadership, including the chief executive, Mr. Gregory Hayes. UTC is an IDA Ireland client company that provides high technology products and services to the global aerospace and building systems industry and which has recently made significant investments in its Irish operations in Shannon and Cork. During my visit, the company announced an expansion of its Irish operations, with an additional investment of €6 million and the creation of a further 20 high-skilled jobs at Shannon.
Later that evening, I met former US President, Mr. Bill Clinton. We had a wide-ranging discussion, including on the Irish economic recovery, a number of international and development issues and the Northern Ireland peace process.
The following morning, I participated in the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit. This was one of the largest gatherings of Heads of State and Government in the history of the United Nations and included an opening address by His Holiness, Pope Francis. The summit formally adopted the post-2015 development agenda, agreed by consensus by the 193 member states of the United Nations, entitled Transforming our World: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This new agenda sets out 17 sustainable development goals and 169 targets aimed at tackling key systemic barriers to sustainable development, such as inequality, unsustainable consumption and production patterns, inadequate infrastructure and lack of decent jobs. The environmental dimension of sustainable development is covered in the goals on climate change, oceans and marine resources, and ecosystems and biodiversity.
I pay tribute to Ireland's ambassador, H.E. Mr. David Donoghue, and his team at the Irish permanent mission to the United Nations in New York because it was he who co-facilitated the negotiation of this agreement together with the ambassador of Kenya to the United Nations. One should be under no illusions about the scale of the work H.E. Mr. Donoghue put into that document, which was accepted unanimously by 193 member states of the United Nations. The selection of this country as one of the two co-facilitator member states was an important and appropriate recognition of our country's proud record, both within the United Nations processes and as a strong supporter of the development agenda.
In my address to the summit I indicated Ireland's strong commitment to this agreement which should galvanise action to end extreme poverty, hunger and under-nutrition as well as expediting progress on gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls. I also took the opportunity to reiterate that Ireland's development aid programme will remain central to our foreign policy and that we will continue to work with our partners towards the elimination of extreme hunger and malnutrition by 2030. This was not a suitable opportunity to raise specific issues such as Palestine.
As I indicated in the House on 6 October, in the margins of the summit I held a bilateral meeting with President al-Sisi of Egypt. I was accompanied by Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade with responsibility for development, trade promotion and North-South co-operation, Deputy Sean Sherlock, and officials. During this meeting, I raised the case of Ibrahim Halawa, the young Irish citizen on trial in Egypt. I made very clear the Government's desire that Ibrahim should be able to return home to Ireland.
I said it would be in the interests of both our countries for us to resolve the position in a positive way. I also stressed to President el-Sisi the considerable public interest in Ireland regarding Mr. Halawa's case, as well as the concerns which have been expressed in the Oireachtas. President el-Sisi and I also discussed regional issues including development co-operation and the aid programmes that Ireland undertakes in sub-Saharan Africa in the context of the refugee crisis. The discussions I had over the course of this visit did not touch upon the situation in Palestine.
Following my attendance at the summit, I officially opened Irish TV's new office on Park Avenue in New York, further expanding the international reach of the company. I also met briefly with representatives of Irish groups in New York, including a group of young Irish entrepreneurs and digital executives who were honoured that week as top-40 digital leaders, and representatives of the GAA community. Representatives of the Irish Government agencies in Ireland House, namely, the IDA, Enterprise Ireland and Tourism Ireland, were also present.
Before leaving New York, I met briefly with Professor Klaus Schwab, the executive chairman of the World Economic Forum. We discussed the organisation's work, as well as Ireland's ongoing engagement with the forum, which continues to provide an exceptional opportunity to interact with key investors and business representatives. Overall, it was a successful visit, with much ground covered in a very short time. I am pleased that it afforded such useful opportunities at bilateral level and a platform from which to articulate Ireland's firm commitment to the sustainable development goals.
I agree with the Taoiseach about An Gorta Mór museum at Quinnipiac. I commend the work of Mr. John Lahey, the president of the university. As the Taoiseach outlined, the university has compiled a unique collection of art, research and resource materials on the Gorta Mór and the subsequent period. It tells the story of Ireland in many ways, and the work is significant and invaluable. I was very impressed, as I am sure the Taoiseach was, by the sculpture and other artwork from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries by foremost artists such as Daniel McDonald, John Behan, Robert Ballagh, Paul Henry, Margaret Allen and many others. I echo his appeal for anybody who is in the vicinity to visit it.
I am also pleased that the Taoiseach found the time to meet President Clinton, who retains a very deep and insightful interest in affairs in this part of the world, across the island but not least in the North. Recently, the 20th anniversary of his first visit to the North was celebrated. The Taoiseach will remember the event, during which he travelled from Belfast to Derry and Dublin. I try to keep in good contact with him, given that he is a true friend of Ireland on many issues about which we are concerned.
The major issue for many Irish Americans, which the Taoiseach did not mention, is the plight of the undocumented. It is estimated that 500,000 people left Ireland during the past eight years, going not only to the US but also to Australia, Canada, Britain, Europe and Asia. There are tens of thousands of people in the US due to the austerity policies. While some travelled legally, it is estimated that there are 50,000 illegal or undocumented Irish. They did not go for the craic, as a lifestyle choice or for the experience. While they might get all that when they are there, it was not the reason they went. They went because they had no long-term employment prospects, meaningful work or proper terms and conditions here. Many of them have families in the US, pay tax and contribute positively to US society. However, when it comes to a bereavement, christening or wedding, they cannot return home. While they contribute significantly to the US economy and are generally recognised as model citizens, they are the Skype generation.
President Obama's executive order last November presents an opportunity for some of them to come out of the shadows and regularise and legalise their presence. It also opens up frustrations given that, for some of them, the ability to acquire a social security card, work legally and get a drivers' licence conflicts with their ability to return to Ireland. If they return, they might not get back to the US. They are caught idir eatarthu, between two worlds. A man from Mayo whom the Taoiseach knows well, Ciarán Staunton, is known to many in the Oireachtas for his hard work on behalf of the undocumented. Mr. Staunton is arguing that the introduction of a waiver policy that would remove the obstacle of the three-year and ten-year bar for undocumented Irish citizens in the US would be an important step forward. A similar waiver scheme is operated by the US mission in Mexico. I recently spoke to Mr. Staunton in New York, and he was in the Oireachtas a few days ago. He is lobbying in this regard, and he believes a waiver scheme, if introduced, would benefit 25% of undocumented Irish citizens. If the United States Embassy in Dublin waived the three-year and ten-year bars, people could go through sponsorship or investment and re-enter the US legally with a regularised status. Has the Taoiseach discussed the proposal with the US Government? Has anybody from the Government discussed it with the US ambassador to Ireland, Mr. Kevin O'Malley, here in Dublin?
I am pleased that the Taoiseach raised the case of Ibrahim Halawa with President al-Sisi. I have been very disappointed with and critical of the Government's refusal to be active on the issue. This young Irish citizen has been held without trial and was on hunger strike for some weeks. He should not be in prison. While it is good that the Taoiseach raised it with the President of Egypt, it is not good enough that our Government is not exhausting all the opportunities open to it.
The Government must have taken a decision not to officially recognise the status of the state of Palestine. This is contrary to the Oireachtas all-party and non-party agreement on the issue. There is no other explanation. If the Government wanted to recognise the state of Palestine, it would do so. The Government recognises the State of Israel, which is fair enough, but to recognise one without recognising both shows a considerable bias. Such tilting against the underdog drives the warmongers in the region. If we cannot uphold international law and the international status of the people of Palestine, who will?
I thank the Deputy for his comments on Quinnipiac, a fine, young, growing university. President Clinton continues to express a very knowledgeable and far-seeing view on Ireland and Northern Ireland and the issues that evolve there. He has never lost his passion for and interest in the issues surrounding Northern Ireland, for which I always commend him.
The issue of the undocumented takes up much time. It appears as though the agencies that issue the J1 visas will discontinue it for people who do not have employment in place before they go to the US. It will be very difficult to deal with, as the Deputy knows. The consequences will be twofold.
First, it will certainly lessen the number of J1 visas issued to Irish students. This important link between Ireland and America has led to the development of new acquaintances, opportunities and businesses over many years. We want to keep that link very much established. Second, if some of those who travel to the United States on holidays or on vacation decide to look for jobs, they will create real problems for themselves for years to come if they are found to be working illegally and without documentation. Ambassador O'Malley has been very strong in trying to ensure nobody who wants to go to America next year is denied such an opportunity. The Irish ambassador to the US, Ms Anne Anderson, has been working very hard on Capitol Hill, but the agencies that authorise J1 visas are completely independent. That is an issue.
I have spoken to Ciarán Staunton on many occasions in respect of various opportunities that might exist for different kinds of visas or waiver schemes that could involve taking up the slack of other countries. To be honest with Deputy Adams, I cannot see much happening in this regard in light of the state of political play in Washington at the moment. We have all heard of the opportunities that exist to tag sections onto legislation going through the Senate or the House of Representatives. Given the tensions that exist between both houses at the moment, I cannot see that this will move on. I might just say in passing that some of the comments I have heard recently about closing down America, in effect, are not the America that we know. I suggest, in the context of globalisation and the movement of people throughout the planet, that openness, diplomacy, understanding and education are the sorts of wars that should be fought in the future so that people have opportunities to work with one another and share their common humanity.
I spoke to President al-Sisi in New York. I had a good meeting with him. He was very frank and open about the difficulties that exist in Egypt and in his response to my comments about the number of visits our consul general has made to the prison and our considerable interest in the ongoing situation of young Ibrahim Halawa. As I have pointed out previously, of course it is not for me or for this country to say we want to throw aside the judicial system that exists in Egypt. President al-Sisi was very clear in his remarks about the authority that is vested in him to use presidential pardons and when they might be used. I might add that the Egyptian ambassador here recently sent me a letter about this case. I will forward copies of it to Deputies Adams and Martin for their information. I met President al-Sisi briefly in Paris last week in the context of all the leaders who were there. I had a brief conversation with him about the Halawa case. I mentioned to him that the Egyptian ambassador here had sent a further piece of correspondence.
I think we should return to the question of Palestine and Israel again. Obviously, it is a matter that is still under consideration here.
Regarding the Taoiseach's visit to the United States, I accept fully that the issue of the undocumented is not one that can now be resolved by the Government here alone. As a former Minister for Foreign Affairs, I have been involved in this issue. It seems to me that the situation is deteriorating, given the political environment in the United States and the hardening of attitudes towards inward migration into that country. I put it to the Taoiseach that we need to return to the bilateral track and seek to ensure that bilateral agreements with the United States are reached. This is very difficult in itself. I know other groups do not want us to do that. The Latinos, in particular, are watching to see if any separate bilateral deals are done. I managed to initiate and conclude a working holiday agreement with the then Deputy Secretary of State, Mr. Negroponte, who is a Republican. The agreement was more restrictive than the Japanese one in so far as it required graduates to look for work specific to their degrees in the United States. Nonetheless, it was a bilateral agreement of sorts that dealt with a limited cohort of graduates - those who had graduated from college in the previous year.
I am concerned about the J1 visa, which has been identified by the Taoiseach as critical. One issue in terms of Ireland's global perspective arises here. In previous generations, emigration created a critical mass of Irish Americans. The great influence of these people has helped significantly to shape opinion in America towards Ireland and issues on this island from an economic, social and political perspective. There is a need to maintain that engagement with the United States through bilateral formats. It would be useful if the Departments of the Taoiseach and Foreign Affairs and Trade were to develop a strategic team that would take a long-term approach to working out how to develop bilateral arrangements and engagements with the United States. The reality we now face is that it will be difficult to achieve any fundamental change in the immigration policy of Congress. I have been listening to this for a decade. People attack Governments on this issue in the full knowledge that it is kind of shallow to do so. The real change has to happen on the other side of the Atlantic. There is no sign of such a change in US politics, which is going in the opposite direction. To be fair, President Obama made an executive order. I think we need to clarify or outline what the practical impact of that will be for many of the undocumented Irish.
I am delighted that the Taoiseach visited the United Technologies Corporation. I was involved in some of the first meetings with representatives of that corporation when I served as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. I initiated relationships with them and helped to further their engagement with Ireland. That has borne fruit. For a long time, this country's longer-term industrialisation policy has been based on low corporate taxes, long-term investment in education and good availability of skills as key ingredients to attract inward investment. I am glad that the Taoiseach is continuing that approach.
I am pleased that the Taoiseach has met President al-Sisi. We need to take a strong stance on what is happening to Ibrahim Halawa because it is not acceptable. He has been held without trial for far too long. If I may say so, behaviour of this kind by Governments in the Middle East and elsewhere exacerbates the alienation that is felt by people and unfortunately leads to their radicalisation. I think we need more intelligent responses to situations like this. It is a basic issue of justice for an Irish citizen. As I have said, what is going on is unacceptable. I do not know whether the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade has had any meetings with his Egyptian counterpart. Has he visited Cairo? The Taoiseach might indicate whether the Government has considered the possibility of a ministerial visit that would endeavour to put pressure to secure Ibrahim Halawa's release.
I commend the Permanent Representative to the United Nations, David Donoghue, on his outstanding work on the sustainable development goals. Ireland has a proud tradition as a distinguished contributor at the United Nations. I refer, for example, to the involvement of Frank Aiken in the emergence of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. More recently, Dermot Ahern and I worked on the convention on the banning of cluster munitions, which was agreed in Croke Park a number of years ago. While I was involved in the later stages of the work on the convention, it was Dermot Ahern who did much of the running on it. We worked with approximately five other countries. This shows the work that small countries can do at UN level. Mr. Donoghue, who has been working on the sustainable development goals, is a very committed diplomat who holds substantial viewpoints and has a hard work ethic. I am pleased for him and for Ireland. Along with his team at the UN and at Iveagh House, he worked with the ambassador of Kenya to lead the way for agreement on the sustainable development goals to be reached.
I ask the Taoiseach to set out what the realistic prospects are for Ireland to achieve its development aid contribution target.
For a long time, 0.7% of GDP has been a globally accepted target. That can be fine when economic growth is not going well. Paradoxically, it can be easier to get to a 0.7% target with low growth but when economic growth is very high one allocates a lot of resources very quickly, which there might not be adequate capacity to absorb. There needs to be some reflective thinking on this to bring about a more sustainable, long-term contribution that rides the cyclical nature of our economy better than has been the case over the past decade. In the first ten years of this century huge moneys went out in aid but huge growth rates meant we still did not make the 0.7% target. We ended up pumping lots of money into UN funds which were good for emergencies but when recession or retraction came this changed. We are a cyclical open economy and that is going to happen so there needs to be a more even-steven approach, which is very project focused and also focused on the key issues of education and governance in other countries. Does the Taoiseach have any thoughts on that?
The approach of the United Nations to global warming is unequivocal. I support the need to protect agriculture and food development because food security is essential but one gets the impression that, over the past five or six years, Ireland has been pulling back and we do not get the whole idea of climate change and how serious it is for the future. One only has to witness the recent storms, which are happening with far more regularity and frequency than 20 or 30 years ago. This is a global phenomenon but one that is impacting on Ireland. I am disappointed we have not had a radical plan on transport to reduce our emissions or new technologies and innovations that could save energy and reduce CO2 emissions so that we can make our targets. Our approach is not ambitious but seems, instead, to be to excuse ourselves from ambitious targets in transport, technology and innovations. There is a lot more potential to engage, particularly in research and development as a third pillar of Science Foundation Ireland, which we initiated in our last term in Government. To what degree has that kind of thing materialised or been developed?
I agree that we have to look at all the opportunities the Deputy mentioned and at the bilateral situation but I get the feeling from talking to people in Congress and the Senate that it is not going to happen. I hope we could make some sort of an arrangement but it is not going to be easy. I spoke to the new speaker of the House, Paul Ryan, who was here earlier this summer or last summer with his family and is very clued into Ireland's position. I wish him the very best in his job as Speaker. Deputy Martin is right that, over the years, the cohort of Irish travelling to America built up a unique connection in many fields all over the States and now that the digital world is moving so rapidly that is even stronger than before. It seems as if the decision being made here resulted from different nationalities congregating in different places across the States. The potential impact of losing J1 visas is not to be underestimated. We do not know at this stage what the requirement for paperwork will be from the far side and what the requirements will be for a young man or woman applying for a J1 visa in order to comply with the conditions of employment which are set by these agencies in Boston, Chicago or wherever, the traditional haunts of the Irish looking for summer work. It would be a terrible shame if young people were denied the opportunity because they go on holidays and find themselves working for a day only to be declared undocumented and deported, giving them difficulties for years afterwards. David Donoghue did a wonderful job.
On Paris, we have signed on for collective reductions with our European colleagues for 2030 but no targets have been allocated yet for any individual country. We are not looking for any escape routes or exemptions or to be treated as a special case but our profile is different from every other country except New Zealand and Uruguay and we want full value for our agricultural land and forestry. We unanimously agreed this at the October meeting of the European Council, as the Minister of State, Deputy Tom Hayes, will be well aware. The Commission seems to have changed the assessment of what that actually means. This makes it more difficult for Ireland to make progress in that regard. We will achieve whatever target is set for us from 2020 to 2030 but no targets have been allocated yet so we are not resiling from anything. If we can produce X amount of food for a growing population and can produce X plus Y in the future while conforming to the current carbon footprint standards, we should not allow inferior food with higher carbon emissions to be produced in other places by knocking down rainforests. We want to and will play our part. Ireland, as part of Europe, will achieve the 40% reduction by 2030 and will achieve whatever target is eventually set for us between 2020 and 2030.
We approved the White Paper today. The energy Bill is going through and it works in four areas, namely, building, energy, transport and the agrisector. The Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Paschal Donohoe, is working hard to see that charging points for electric cars are set up all over the country. Deputy Martin's party has a particular view on how that may be incentivised for some cars and such ideas are to be commended. The legislation and the White Paper on energy set out very ambitious targets for Ireland. The debate is moving way beyond the narrow confines of one particular sector and there will be public consultation and discussion. The Bill will allow for people to be very ambitious in the four sectors I mentioned, which are building, energy, transport and the agrisector.
Written Answers follow Adjournment.