I also welcome the Members of the House of Keys, which is referred to in James Joyce's Ulysses. I join with Senator Brian Hayes in expressing concern about the special needs assistants being let go. This is extraordinary as there is a need for these people. It should not be beyond the wit of the Department to redeploy them rather than getting rid of them and then rehiring them or others. I listened to a discussion on this and understand that one of the problems cited by the Department is that these posts are client centred and deal with the needs of particular children but it should be possible to find other children in the network who could benefit. Failure to redeploy these people when they are so urgently needed is grossly inefficient.
Order of Business (Resumed).
Hear hear.
I have raised the issue of Dublin hospitals' accident and emergency units in the House a number of times. A situation occurred last week in which St. James's Hospital received unjustified criticism. An elderly man who should have known better turned up in the hospital's accident and emergency department and was extremely abusive, obstructive and violent. He then proceeded to urinate on the floor. When he refused to do as he was told, he was eventually put in a wheelchair and taken out to the fringes of the hospital grounds to be placed in a taxi for which staff had telephoned. The taxi driver refused to take the man because he was so drunk and unpleasant, left him there and called the Garda. The man had disappeared by the time gardaí arrived a few minutes later. Much criticism was directed at the hospital but I support it100%. I deplore the insane and disgusting behaviour of this ignorant animal and the way in which he endangered the well-being of patients who might have been seriously ill, traumatised or had open wounds. There should be a drunk tank like a dog pound and these people should be put into it, as happens in the United States.
Hear, hear.
These people should be subject to an automatic fine of €200 when they recover with a thick head in the morning.
The raising of the issue of special needs assistants is opportune. As Senator Ulick Burke said, it has only been a few weeks since the Minister for Education and Science made promises to this House in the area of special needs and resource teaching. I have predicted previously that this will be an important issue in the near future as people are now planning for September. Many young children with dyslexia and mild learning difficulties will need special tuition of 2.5 hours per week, which was the position in the past, but this service will be taken from them. I call on the Minister not to address this House but to say that she has concluded her review and will change direction on this, otherwise it will be detrimental to the Department of Education and Science in the future.
Hear, hear.
Will the Leader bring to the attention of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the challenge facing a juror who must sit beside the family of the accused in court, a family that takes note of the names and addresses of every juror called? This happened recently in the case of a murder trial. We do not have an immediate ability to address this matter but the danger of intimidation of jurors is strong. They find themselves squeezed into a courtroom next to the family of an accused person that immediately and visibly takes note of their details. Even if this is not the intention, such actions lead to intimidation.
This is a matter for the courts.
It should be drawn to the attention of the Minister.
I join with Senator Brian Hayes in calling for a debate on the competitiveness of indigenous Irish industry, with specific reference to the job losses at Waterford Crystal. The loss of 400 jobs in a town such as Dungarvan is devastating. It is not only the 400 jobs at the Waterford Crystal plant that will be lost, but also the jobs of the suppliers and the service providers for the plant. I call on the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment to establish a jobs task force to secure replacement jobs for Dungarvan. I also call on the Minister to deliver on the promise of decentralisation and to speed up that process as a matter of urgency to assist the economy of Dungarvan.
In more general terms, I hope Waterford Crystal will invest the €30 million earned from the rezoning of property in its crystal division. The company gave a commitment to that effect and I hope the promise will be honoured.
I ask the Leader if we can have a debate on public service pay.
(Interruptions).
I do not know how much Senator O'Toole gets from the public service, but it is a lot more than I do.
I get exactly the same as Senator Ross.
(Interruptions).
The commissioner, Senator O'Toole, wishes to interrupt.
On a point of order, will Senator Ross tell the House if he returned his benchmarking award last year?
That is not a point of order. Senator Ross will deal with the Order of Business and address his remarks to the Chair.
If Senator O'Toole wishes to interrupt, perhaps the Chairman could ask if he is interrupting in his capacity as a commissioner or as a Senator.
(Interruptions).
Senator Ross should not be inviting or provoking interruptions. He will deal with the Order of Business and address his remarks to the Chair.
Public service pay should be debated. There is another benchmarking deal due in 2007 and that is a serious issue.
(Interruptions).
Senator Ross, without interruptions.
This will be a serious issue because it will be thrust upon us once again without debate. The House should have a debate on benchmarking before the event, rather than afterwards.
Hear, hear.
We have never had a debate in advance of the benchmarking deals.
The issue is also important because there is a serious problem in the public service at the present time around benchmarking. The problem arises because certain public servants have not delivered on the performance targets that were set under the previous agreement. I call on the Minister for Finance to come into the House to tell us whether the performance targets agreed under benchmarking have been met by anybody in the public service. I suggest that benchmarking is a facade and a cosmetic way to pay the public service twice as much as the private sector.
That is ridiculous and a disgraceful intervention.
I had anticipated that the issue of public service pay would be raised and I prepared some figures. The analysis depends on what period one examines, but if one takes public sector earnings from ——
Is the Senator making a point on the Order of Business or does he wish to engage in a debate on the issue?
I have one brief point to make ——
We would like to hear Senator Mansergh's point.
Is the Senator seeking a debate?
(Interruptions).
This is an issue that requires a fuller debate. Between March 2001 and December 2004, public sector pay, excluding the health service, rose by 26.5%. The average industrial wage between 2000 and 2004 rose by26.4%. That is 0.1% of a difference.
There is the answer for Senator Ross.
There is a good deal of misrepresentation around relativities, which depend on the period——
Hear, hear.
(Interruptions).
I believe that people in the public service do a good job and do not deserve the denigration that is continually directed at them from certain quarters.
The Senator can raise all of these points during the debate proper.
(Interruptions).
Many Senators are offering to speak and time is limited. I ask speakers to be brief or some will be disappointed.
I request the Leader to invite the Minister for Agriculture and Food to this House as soon as possible to debate the inadequate levels of staff on the helpline for the single farm payment scheme.
It is deplorable.
Neither public representatives nor farmers can get through to the helpline. On 25 occasions last week I tried to access the helpline number and failed. Yesterday I encountered a similar situation. I contacted the Minister's private secretary and was told the Minister and her staff had a similar problem in accessing the helpline. The way farmers are being treated by this Government is scandalous.
Senators
Hear, hear.
If a farmer makes a simple error he or she can lose his or her entire entitlement, whereas the Minister or an official can make a mistake and refer to it as a mistake.
Will Senator Bannon please resume his seat?
It is a disgrace.
I wonder if our guests from the Isle of Man in the Distinguished Visitors Gallery understand the different accents here today. They must wonder which side of the mainland they are on.
That is out of order.
That is not relevant to the Order of Business. The Senators are wasting precious time.
I hope the guests from the Isle of Man will understand my Kilkenny accent. I join with other Senators who have asked for a debate on concerns about the indigenous industrial sector. This follows the announcement that Waterford Crystal is to axe more than 400 jobs in Dungarvan and Waterford city. As a representative of the adjoining area of Kilkenny I know many people employed directly or indirectly in services related to the crystal factory. I also ask the Leader for a discussion on special needs education. The matter is urgent. In my time in this House there have been several discussions on the topic. The Government has always said it is spending extra money but we have seen a serious deterioration in the level of service provided, exacerbated by the announcement yesterday evening. I hope the Minister for Education and Science will reverse the decision.
I concur with Senators Minihan and Ryan on the attack in Cork. It was particularly heinous and I compliment the gardaí on their role in apprehending those responsible.
I ask the Leader to examine a report published yesterday by the Economic and Social Research Institute on the rate of caesarean sections in our maternity hospitals. This is an issue of concern with its implications for the health of pregnant women and their babies. I ask the Leader to examine the possibility of inviting the Minister for Health and Children to the House to debate this important issue.
I refer to Tristan Dowse, who is in an Indonesian orphanage at the moment. Will the Leader ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to apply to the High Court to have independent legal representation made available to this young, vulnerable Irish citizen whose rights must be protected as the situation changes?
I was afraid the Cathaoirleach had forgotten about the small Senator at the back.
I could not forget about Senator Coghlan.
On the last occasion I raised this issue, the Leader replied that she would like to see a splurge, or words to that effect.
Did I say "splurge"?
I ask Senator Coghlan to come to the point.
The Minister for Finance said he would rely on the good sense of the Irish people. I presume he intended people not to splurge. I am referring to the significant shortfall in the pensions area. This affects most citizens and needs to be redressed. A number of the Members of the House have called on the Government to permit SSIA money to be invested in PRSAs and pension funds. This is in the national interest and is a matter which might be debated.
I agree with Senator O'Meara's request that the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children come to the House to debate the latest reports on caesarean sections. The controversial issue of home births should also be debated. Many mothers who wish to give birth at home are being prevented from doing so by the health services.
As it is May the end of the school year is approaching. Schools are learning of their allocations of funds for special needs assistants and in some cases are being refused temporary accommodation for school building programmes. The schools building programme is chaotic. It is time that the Health and Safety Authority investigated school buildings in the same way they investigated hospital accident and emergency departments. Children are taught in outrageous conditions. Schools sometimes do not have fire escapes or classroom windows. Following the success of the health and safety report on hospital accident and emergency departments we should now examine primary and secondary school buildings from a health and safety perspective for the sake of students and teaching staff.
I also welcome my colleagues from Tynwald in the Isle of Man. They experienced hospitality while visiting Roscommon some months ago and had no problems understanding the accent.
Please speak on the Order of Business.
I join Senator Ross in calling for debate on the serious issue of the public and private sectors. It should be a measured debate. My background is in business. Many businesses are downsizing and the Government appears to be making the situation more difficult. If someone asked me ten years ago whether he or she should set up a business or seek Government employment, I would have advised the former option. However, I would now advise Government employment as the better option. I call for a measured debate——
As well as a factual one.
The self-employed will look forward to a debate. We should fight for their rights.
With regard to special educational needs, the Government has a proud record on the delivery of services.
Some 70 people in the area are to lose their jobs.
I will not go into the details of this issue.
Does Senator Fitzgerald favour a debate on the issue?
With regard to the recent announcement, a special needs assistant is assigned to an individual schoolchild. No mechanism exists for redeployment. Discussion is ongoing on the redeployment of the 70 or 75 special needs assistants referred to and the matter should not be trivialised.
On the resignation in Coláiste Mhuire, Marino——
This matter is not on the Order of Business. We cannot hold a debate on it.
I am not debating but ask the Leader of the House to assist me in clarifying a point. Would the Leader agree that we all share the deep concern expressed on the resignation of the principal of Coláiste Mhuire, who is held in esteem throughout the education sector? We are also disturbed at the statements from the only Christian Brother on the teaching staff at that college and from Mr. Ó Murchú——
The Senator is in danger of abusing privilege by mentioning names.
I call on the Leader of the House to ask the Minister for Education and Science to ensure that the important educational needs of the students at the college are met. That is a primary concern.
I will not refer to our distinguished visitors other than to say how happy we are they are here. A day off renders everyone very frisky.
We should try that more often.
We have it every weekend.
Senator Brian Hayes, the Leader of the Opposition, raised a matter about which we are all concerned, the devastating news about Waterford Crystal. I can only imagine the impact of the loss of that number of jobs in a town the size of Dungarvan. As Senator Cummins is aware I visited that plant twice during last autumn and winter. It is amazing that this number of employees are to be let go.
A debate has been requested on indigenous employment and competitiveness. I understand from a programme I heard this morning that one of the issues is the price of the dollar vis-à-vis the euro, which is an extremely serious one for the company. Another issue is that of marketing. I will seek a debate on the general issue of indigenous industry. We all regret very much what has happened to the Waterford Crystal factories.
Senator Brian Hayes also called for a debate on the loss of 70 special needs assistants jobs. As I understand it, the Minister for Education and Science is concluding her review on that matter. She is a person with great common sense and when she has concluded her review I am sure she will not let those skilled people go. A redeployment system or whatever one might call it would be helpful in this respect. These are people with skills which have been honed in dealing with a particular child. However, if one is good with children who have a disadvantage, one can transfer that skill to another child in one's care. I hope that will be the outcome in this case. I will raise this matter with the Minister. I consider it is a suitable matter for debate.
Senator O'Toole raised the issue of the Marino Institute of Education. He spoke of intimidation there and it sounded like a house of mystery and mayhem involving issues concerning money and all the rest of it. The Senator asked for a debate or statements on the issue, the latter might be the way to deal with this matter. I will speak to the Senator after the Order of Business. As the story was revealed yesterday, we are a little in mysteryland about it because we do not know any of the details. It is difficult to get them. I heard the Senator speaking on the matter on radio yesterday. He obviously knows more about it than he has said, and I can understand how he does.
Senator Ryan raised the matter of the loss of skilled staff. He made the point that when crystal is fashionable tableware in the future, which it surely will be, such skills, which made that product so desirable, will be lost.
Senator Ryan also raised the matter of the criminal incident in Cork. Of all the crimes we have heard debated, this crime was dreadful. There were two aspects to it. One was that the children slept through the ordeal which was amazing. The other was that one of the criminals who was meant to be in charge fell asleep. There was some hope for people captured in such circumstances in that the criminals were not very professional. I agree with the Senator that the fact they have proven links with the IRA shows how low and petty its members have sunk in terms of the level of activity in which they have become engaged. The Senator described the incident as "brutal", "squalid" and "criminal". They are terrific adjectives and so correct in this case.
Senator Ulick Burke raised the matter of the loss of SNA jobs and proposed the introduction of a panel system. I do not know how that would work but it should work. These people have honed their skills and those skills should not be lost. Senator Minihan endorsed what Senator Ryan said. He said these criminals should get no comfort or succour.
Senator Norris raised the matter of the loss of the special needs assistants jobs. He also raised the issue of accident and emergency departments, which was discussed at great length by Joe Duffy on his radio show. Joe has become a male Florence Nightingale.
More like Florence and Zebedee — it is time for bed.
Now we know how the Senator likes to spend his spare time.
Senator Finucane raised the matter of the loss of SNA jobs. The review in this regard should be concluded and the outcome made known shortly.
Senator Quinn raised the matter of intimidating behaviour displayed to those serving on juries. The Cathaoirleach rightly said this is a matter for the courts.
Senator Cummins raised the matter of job losses in Dungarvan. I know how he must feel about what has happened in his home town. He raised the matter of decentralisation and asked when jobs will be decentralised to that area. He said he hoped there would not be a reneging of the promise of such jobs. I hope not in the case of Dungarvan and the south east. I will endeavour to find out what level of activity that process has reached.
Senator Ross referred to public service pay and asked for a debate on benchmarking before the next agreement is reached. That is a good idea. Senator Mansergh said that between 2001 and 2004, wage increases in the public and private sector were almost on a par, which is not how the matter was reported. If there is to be a reasoned debate it should be factual. I will endeavour to arrange one.
Senator Bannon said he had difficulty accessing the telephone helpline number of the Department of Agriculture and Food. I find all helplines of no use. First, no one answers and, second, when there is an answer one must press approximately 20 buttons before speaking to a person or being asked to telephone again.
Senator John Paul Phelan and Senator Quinn referred to the indigenous sector. Senator Phelan also raised the issues of special needs in education and the IRA attack in Cork.
Senator O'Meara referred to the ESRI report detailing the significant increase in the numbers of women having Caesarean sections. This issue is worthy of debate because it has an impact on the fecundity and health of women. The Senator also asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs to ensure that Tristan Dowse receives independent legal representation.
Senator Coghlan wants us to put the SSIAs into pension funds. I repeat what I said previously, that is, it is our money and we will put it where we wish.
I want the Minister for Finance to address the issue.
He will not get his hands on my money. The Senator asked for a debate on the matter.
Senator Browne referred to home births. There is a constant debate on that issue. The established health service does not like people to have home births. It thinks that people cannot have babies in the absence of health service providers. This is always a contentious issue. The Senator said that the Health and Safety Authority should investigate primary and secondary schools, as happened with the health issue.
Senator Feighan asked for the debate on the public and private sectors to be measured and factual. I will seek to arrange such a debate next week.
Senator Fitzgerald, who is aware of what is happening in the education sector, referred to special needs in education and the redeployment of staff and to events at Marino College. We must get the facts on what happened in the college. The Department of Education and Science said that it is not a matter for it, even though it provides a per capita grant per student. We need an explanation of what happened.
Order of Business agreed to.