The Order of Business is Nos. 1, 2, 3 and 19, motion 18. No. 1, motion re referral of a proposal for a Council decision creating a European refugee fund to the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights, will be taken without debate. No. 2, motion re referral of the agreement between the Governments of Ireland and the Republic of Hungary to the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights, will be taken without debate. No. 3, Committee Stage of the Equal Status Bill, 1999, will be taken today. No. 19, motion 18, will be taken between 6 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Order of Business.
I gather there are about 84 Committee Stage amendments to the Equal Status Bill, 1999. Clearly, these will not all be dealt with in a satisfactory way today. Perhaps the Leader will undertake to review progress at about 5.45 p.m. Since the same Bill is ordered for tomorrow, Committee Stage could continue then if needs be.
Will the Leader assure the House that all Stages of any Bills introduced next week will not be processed and that the usual end of term device will not be availed of by certain Departments to introduce a Bill, declaring it the most important in the world, and asking that all Stages be taken on the same day? Will he assure us that we will have adequate time to debate any legislation which may appear next week?
I gather it is the intention of this Government to review the laws on libel and defamation and that a review is taking place. Will the Leader indicate, either tomorrow or on Friday, what progress has been made and whether the Government has any proposals? Perhaps he might initiate a debate in the House on the matter because there are issues which need to be addressed and all sides need to talk to each other rather than at each other.
Last week I raised with the Leader the fact that we face a budget surplus of between £1 billion and £2 billion. He gave an undertaking to come back to me but I have not heard anything. Because of our great regard for the Department of Finance and its total lack of policy on spending, it should get some indication from public representatives on how that money might be invested in the future. It is a serious point in that there is no culture or tradition in the Department of Finance of a spending or investment strategy. It would be very helpful if that could be done. I recognise that the Private Members' motion tonight will deal with some part of that but I would like to see an overall plan. We have already costed the national development plan but this is additional money. We should have a plan on how it will be used and hear Government policy on it.
The two motions before us are important – one relates to the European refugee fund and the other to an agreement between this Government and the Government of Hungary on drug trafficking, money laundering and organised crime. It is a shame that they should go to committee without some discussion in the House. Will the Leader indicate that when they leave the joint committee there will be an opportunity for both motions to be discussed in the House? They are matters of considerable relevance concerning far-reaching issues.
We are not happy that Committee Stage of the Equal Status Bill, 1999, is being taken today and Report Stage tomorrow. This legislation is of considerable importance and a large number of amendments has been tabled. The Bill took 12 months to get through the other House and it will be dealt with in two weeks in this House. I do not believe that is a proper way for us to deal with legislation of this substance. I agree with what Senator Manning said about a review at 5.45 p.m. but we should go a step further. I would prefer if the Leader indicated that we would not pass Committee Stage today, that we would finish it tomorrow rather than going on to Report Stage and that we could deal with Report Stage next week.
A demonstration took place outside the House yesterday by the Jubilee 2000 group concerning debt cancellation for developing countries. The House debated this important matter last week and the Minister of State, Deputy O'Donnell, has been up front and proactive on the issue. However, can we do something more substantial such as twinning Ireland with a developing country like Mozambique? This year's Exchequer surplus will be close to Mozambique's national debt. We could also twin with a country such as East Timor to provide a link in terms of resources, education and so. This might provide a way forward on these matters.
I congratulate those involved in the making of last night's "Prime Time" programme on private rented accommodation which painted an horrific picture. Does the Government propose legislation regarding rent control and regulation of the private rented sector which is completely unregulated? A tenant can be evicted at the whim of a landlord and conditions in much of this sector are dire. Is legislation contemplated to give security of tenure and fair rent?
As regards No. 2, international agreements do not require the agreement of Seanad Éireann and, therefore, are not discussed in the format of a motion in this House. However, the Leader may be able to allow such a discussion in a different format.
Will the Leader arrange a debate early in the next session on the issue of lobbying? We pride ourselves on developing a more open and accountable culture and I hope that is the case. However, there is significant evidence to prove what many of us have suspected for a long time, namely that there are pockets of power which are not accountable to anyone. This is not consistent with the principles of a republic as I understand them. We must debate whether there is a need for a register of lobbyists and whether lobbying, which has become an industry, needs to be regulated. This issue could be debated with much benefit to all.
The Senator voted against the Registration of Lobbyists Bill a few weeks ago.
We voted in favour of the Bill.
Senator Quill has made the case for a debate.
There is always time for conversion.
Senator Quill should talk to Senator Dardis.
Emerging events create a new set of circumstances where issues can be revisited with profit.
We are moving into a different area.
I am always open to dealing with issues as they emerge, which is the hallmark of a liberal democrat. Will the Leader arrange for a debate on this issue?
Bring back the Bill.
I wish to ask about the manner in which legislation is dealt with between this House and the Dáil. I refer in particular to the Local Government Bill and the Planning and Development Bill. This House dealt with the planning Bill for some weeks but when it went to the Dáil the Minister started adding to it. Those additions, such as the right of the National Roads Authority to raise funds and to apply tolls to roads it intends to construct, and the right of local authorities to apply tolls to secondary roads, are extremely important and should have been discussed in this House.
The Seanad has no control over the manner in which the other House does its business. Any amendments which are made to that or any other Bill in the Dáil will come back to this House in due course.
The amendments should have been dealt with in this House. That is what should happen with the Local Government Bill which Leader says we will take in this House in two weeks' time.
Will the Leader arrange a brief discussion on Tibet? I had tabled a motion on the Order Paper on the subject but it has been removed. I want to substitute another such motion because the sub-committee on human rights of the Joint Committee on Foreign Affairs unanimously passed a resolution on Tibet. It would be useful to examine it and perhaps pass it unanimously in this House. An hour or 30 minutes would suffice.
Senator Manning raised the issue of reform of the libel laws. I absolutely agree, we must be very careful. We do not want to go down the road Britain has taken and we must, despite the intensive lobbying by newspaper interests, preserve a decent balance so the individual, in taking on these corporations with huge resources, is not placed at a further disadvantage. I remind newspapers that if they tell the truth, they have nothing to worry about. Why should they be permitted to print lies about decent people? If they do, they should be soaked as hard as possible.
Senators
Hear, hear.
In recent weeks there have been repeated calls for a debate on the retention of the groceries order. We are concerned that the Minister has said nothing. There is a motion on the Order Paper—
That is not true, the Minister has said plenty.
She did not say what we want her to say.
The Minister said it in the Dáil.
The public and the grocers do not understand her position. She has not made a decision and is prevaricating. We would like the motion on the Order Paper in the names of the Fine Gael Senators to be debated.
I support Senator Costello in his call for aid for Mozambique and, particularly, Ethiopia. In 1984 we said this spectacle would never happen again. Everyone was shocked at the pictures which emerged at the time and now there is another dis aster. I implore the Minister and the Government to give further aid to alleviate the present suffering in Ethiopia.
We seem to have allowed the issue of Sellafield to go off the boil. If that happens, it will favour the continuance of the status quo. There is an environmental conference taking place in June and I ask the Leader to remind the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, and the rest of the Cabinet team who will attend, to make a sustained effort to ensure the issue is kept under observation and that the British are kept aware of our feelings. The issue should not be allowed to simmer away quietly.
I congratulate The Examiner on becoming the Irish Examiner. I ask the Leader to use this opportunity to suggest to the editor that coverage of the Seanad in the Irish Examiner would make it a national paper.
Hear, hear.
Will the Leader inform the House of the Government's intentions regarding the Intoxicating Liquor Bill, which will be introduced in this House? When will that happen and what time will be allowed for it?
There will be no early closing in that debate.
The debate involves serious questions for the tourism industry. I am glad that discerning tourists are still flocking to Killarney and the kingdom. Recently people were desperately trying to-—
The Senator's point should be relevant to the Order of Business.
I will show its relevance and I appreciate the Chair's patience. I will not labour the point because Members of the House are aware of the dastardly comments made about the MacGillycuddy Reeks and Killarney – cheap shots made by people trying to promote a small and relatively unknown guidebook.
I compliment the Taoiseach on what he said last Friday when he visited Killarney in the company of the captains of Irish industry. He said that for more than 25 years he has been visiting Kerry and Killarney and it was always a great sadness to him when he looked in his rear view mirror and saw Killarney disappearing. That says it all regarding people who said something else about seeing it in a rear view mirror. I thank those who made kind and appropriate remarks in this regard.
I support calls by several Members to invite a representative of the National Roads Authority to come into the Seanad. I also support calls by Members for the Minister for the Environment and Local Government to come to the Seanad and to indicate that he will provide extra funding from the Exchequer for our national secondary roads, the most neglected routes throughout the country. Each county has a large number of such routes and very little funding has been allocated to them. It is a matter of urgency that a representative of the National Roads Authority or the Minister for the Environment and Local Government should come to the House to explain why more funding cannot be made available for our national secondary roads.
I thank Senator Quill for her contribution. I will table a motion in the words she used and I presume she will be happy to second it.
With pleasure.
I ask the Leader of the House to bring to the attention of the relevant Minister an issue about which I am concerned, the high cost of motor insurance, particularly for young drivers. A large number of people who have come home having spent a few years working abroad find it impossible to get car insurance. Young motorists are being charged very high motor insurance premia and some controls must be put in place.
With regard to the request by Senators Manning and Costello, we can review progress on the Equal Status Bill, 1999, at 5.45 p.m. I hope we will be able to deal with all Stages between today and tomorrow, but we can review progress at 5.45 p.m. With regard to legislation for next week, I hope to brief the Whips in the morning or later this evening regarding three Bills, one of which is the Intoxicating Liquor Bill. Legislation must be taken before statements or debates. I accept Senator Manning's point – he is a former Leader of the House and he speaks with the experience of having to work within the confines of requests by Government.
Senators Manning and Norris requested a debate in the House on the libel laws. I can facilitate the House by allowing time for such a debate. This matter is of immense importance and there is a great deal of interest in it. We used to have a newspaper that printed the truth in the news. That is what Senator Norris was talking about.
Yes.
I look forward to having such a debate.
What about a discussion on Tibet?
I can pass on Senator O'Toole's views regarding the budget surplus. As the Senator mentioned, the House will discuss another financial matter tonight. It is wonderful that 12 to 14 years down the road we have a budget surplus.
It is if we spend it wisely.
I can accede to his request and look forward to—
Supporting the call for a salary increase for public servants.
—the many contributions that will be made from the Opposition benches congratulating the Government and the Minister for Finance on the wonderful job they have done.
They should make an investment in public servants.
And give the Leas-Chathaoirleach a 30% salary increase.
Let us have order to allow the Leader to reply to the Order of Business.
Regarding the call for a debate on the private rented sector, I can allow time for such a debate. In recent years amendments were made to existing legislation to ensure all rented accommodation is registered, but many local authorities have fallen down in this regard.
I will take on board Senator Quill's views to see how they can be progressed. I wish to inform Senator Coogan that the Planning and Development Bill is going through the Dáil. Amendments are being tabled to the Bill after which it will be back in the Seanad. This indicates that the Minister for the Environment and Local Government, having been the secretary of LAMA and a member of a local authority, is very flexible and at the end of the day it is about getting things right. I welcome this and I know Senator Coogan has vast experience—
Will he write to this House?
—and will appreciate where the Minister is coming from. He accepts amendments both in the Seanad and Dáil and that is what good legislation is all about, which I welcome.
Senator Norris asked for short statements on Tibet for which I will make time available. I will pass on Senator Jackman's views to the Minister regarding the groceries order on which we made our views known in this House last week. I will allow time to discuss Sellafield further, as requested by Senator Quinn. The House is in agreement that Sellafield may be a danger to the health of Irish people and I have no difficulty making time available for a debate on the matter. Senators Quinn and Coughlan send good wishes to the Irish Examiner and I will pass on their views during the Committee on Procedure and Privileges meeting this afternoon.
I inform Senator Coghlan that the Intoxicating Liquor Bill will be in the Seanad all next week when Members can take part in a lengthy debate. I understand Members have been influenced by the debate in the other House on various matters and these issues will be taken on board.
Senator Burke called for an extra allocation of money for national secondary roads. As the Senator may be aware, an extra allocation has already been made this year. I will pass on his views to the Minister. I will pass on Senator Hayes's views on the high cost of motor insurance.
Order of Business agreed to.