Before taking the Order of Business I should like to raise a matter of great national importance. It is in relation to Motion No. 22 on the Order Paper which reads:
That Seanad Éireann calls on the Government to introduce legislation to make malicious injury claims arising out of bomb outrages in Border counties and elsewhere a national charge and to establish a fund to compensate persons injured and the dependants of those killed in such outrages.
Unfortunately in Border counties we have had a number of these bomb outrages and I made inquiries as to the number of malicious injury claims lodged against various county councils. The latest information in regard to Donegal County Council is that the total of malicious injury claims lodged against them to date amounts to £438,362. That would be a huge sum to impose on the ratepayers of that county. In County Monaghan, without taking into account the recent bombing in Clones, malicious injury claims to date amount to £23,538. The secretary of the county council stated that this does not include claims arising out of the recent bomb blast in Clones which could be up to £250,000.
Unfortunately, another such outrage happened in Belturbet in County Cavan where the damage was as serious as that caused in Clones and that would probably mean claims against Cavan County Council for £250,000. In a county——