The Order of Business is No. 1, motion regarding the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and the Council on criminal sanctions for insider dealing and market manipulation, to be taken without debate; No. 2, motion regarding the Teaching Council Act 2001 (Amendment of Nominating Bodies) Order 2012, to be taken without debate; No. 3, statements, questions and answers on the EU fiscal compact treaty, to be taken at the conclusion of No. 2 and the time to be given to this debate shall not exceed one hour, with the contributions of group spokespersons not to exceed five minutes and the contribution of the Sinn Féin Senator not to exceed two minutes; and all Senators to confine their remarks to one minute when asking questions of the Minister; No. 4, Education (Amendment) Bill 2012 — Report and Final Stages, to be taken at the conclusion of No. 3 and conclude not later than 5.45 p.m.; No. 5, Electoral (Amendment) (Political Funding) Bill 2011 — Second Stage (Resumed), to be taken at the conclusion of No. 4 and conclude not later than 6.45 p.m., with the contributions of Senators not to exceed six minutes and the Minister to be called on to reply not later than 6.35 p.m.
Order of Business
I am a little concerned that only three of the Senators nominated by the Taoiseach are present.
How many have Fianna Fáil got?
Senator Jillian van Turnhout is not too far away from it.
Senator Eamonn Coghlan has decided to take the Taoiseach's soup and jump to the Fine Gael Party grouping. I am sure the Leader and the Chief Whip had nothing to do with the further diminution of democracy in this Chamber following on from this. Can the Leader confirm that no transfer fee was involved and will the leader's allowance be returned to the State? We wish Senator Eamonn Coghlan well in his position of defending the indefensible with this new Government.
I want to move on to something that is of greater importance. I thank the Leader that the Minister of State responsible for European Affairs, Deputy Lucinda Creighton, will be in attendance. I draw the attention of all colleagues to a report entitled Ministers' Attendance in Brussels, completed by the University of Gothenburg in March 2011 on the attendance by Ministers at meetings of the European Union. Time after time I have listened to Ministers and Members opposite complain how the Government is working hard to repair alleged reputational damage to the State because Ministers in the last Government did not engage with or attend meetings. These are erroneous and spurious comments.
They are all true.
Does the Senator have a question for the Leader?
I would like to see whether the Senator is as vocal as she says she is tomorrow evening when we discuss rural schools.
Is the Leader aware of the report? Will the Leader, on behalf of the Government, retract the remarks made by nearly every member of the Cabinet and his party that the previous Government did not engage at European meetings? That is patently untrue. An independent report carried out by the University of Gothenburg shows that Ireland is ranked fifth out of 27 states. I ask the Leader, on behalf of the Government and its Senators, does he accept the report? Will he, on behalf of the Government, retract ridiculous remarks made here and in the other Chamber that Ministers in the previous Government did not engage at meetings, which is patently untrue?
I am sure the Minister of State will give a similar response to the comment made by the Tánaiste when he attended the excellent debate we had on foreign affairs and trade last Thursday. He pointed out the important work that he and others, in Government, have been doing to restore Ireland's international reputation since last February.
None of us should describe a Senator's decision to change grouping as a diminution of democracy. Some of us have in the past moved to a new group. We in the Labour Party welcome new Members to our group and do not charge transfer fees.
I commend Bord Bia for its wonderful initiative to hold a big convention today, a showcase for Irish food producers. Retailers, distributors and wholesalers from all over the world have come to look at Irish food, conduct business and develop trade links. I have seen important trade links being fostered in China and welcome reports today that one of the leading figures in the Chinese Government will visit Ireland and head a trade mission here. We are sending people to China on a trade mission in the next month. There is great potential for Ireland to act as a gateway for Chinese businesses that want to come here.
Will he be asked about Tibet?
Absolutely.
Good.
We have to be conscious of human rights issues.
Excellent.
I have been to China on human rights training programmes. It is important to keep Senator Norris's point in mind. We should also bear in mind the positive aspects of further links with China. We are already seeing large numbers of Chinese students being welcomed in our universities and colleges. It is important for us to foster such links. The establishment of strong links between China and western democracies is important for Chinese human rights activists.
Yes.
A wide range of foreign affairs and trade issues were covered during last week's excellent debate with the Tánaiste. In light of what is happening today with Bord Bia and the development of links with China, it might be worth having a full debate on Ireland's trade links with other countries. We had such a debate with the previous Minister of State in this role, Deputy Jan O'Sullivan. It might be worthwhile to have a debate with the new Minister of State, Deputy Costello, who has taken up that mantle now. I ask the Leader to arrange such a debate in the coming weeks.
I would like to begin by wishing the very best to my colleague, Senator Eamonn Coghlan, with his endeavours in his new career with Fine Gael. I look forward to continuing to work with him and all my colleagues in this House.
It is a great shame that the Internet service providers of Ireland have chosen today — Safer Internet Day — to criticise the decision of their UK counterparts to require their customers to opt in before accessing adult material. The Internet service providers of Ireland are more than willing to block access to sites that infringe copyright, but they consider it to be nothing less than censorship to try to prevent a child from accessing potentially harmful material. They took a similar view when they were asked to block child abuse material. This is already being done in many European countries, including Norway, Sweden and Italy. The US National Centre for Missing and Exploited Children has estimated that 20% of all pornography on the Internet depicts the abuse and exploitation of children. However, Irish Internet providers are more concerned with preventing people from downloading songs and other things from the entertainment industry than with blocking terrible images of children being abused. I ask the Leader to invite the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources to the House to outline what Ireland is doing to join its EU counterparts in blocking child abuse material on the Internet.
I welcome a statement made in one of today's newspapers by the Minister for Health, under the headline "Reilly wants VHI to drive down costs". That point has been made repeatedly from these benches in recent weeks. We have called for the Milliman report to be published in unredacted form. That would help us to make precisely the point the Minister for Health is making. The Minister has said he does not accept "for half a minute" that the costing of various procedures should increase by 9% every year. He has added that he intends to appoint four new directors. I ask the Leader to invite the Minister to debate the issues covered in the Milliman report in this House before he appoints the new directors. We are interested in issues like VHI's lack of cost-consciousness, which are covered on every page of the Milliman report. Most blatantly, the report mentions that people are being kept in hospital for more than ten days even though best practice suggests they should stay for just three days. I would welcome a debate on the issues raised by the Minister in the report in today's The Irish Times, the Milliman report and the forthcoming appointment by the Minister of four new directors of VHI, with a mandate to drive down costs.
I would like to mention how shocked I am about two things that have happened in recent days. First, I would like the Minister, Deputy Varadkar——
The Senator can raise one issue today. She can raise the second issue tomorrow.
Okay. They are both very important.
We can give the Senator time tomorrow as well.
I join Senator Bacik in welcoming the visit of the Vice President of China to Ireland between 18 and 20 February next. His arrival will be a big moment. He is tipped to be the next President of China. We need to explore our trade links with that country.
The main reason I am speaking is to ask the Leader to call on the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Varadkar, to make an urgent statement on Galway Airport. Bank of Ireland's decision to raid €1.1 million from the airport's account last week has put the airport in jeopardy and is likely to precipitate its liquidation. This morning, I visited 14 workers who staged a sit-in last night and are still there today because their statutory redundancy is up in the air. The reason is the airport must retain the moneys left in the account for corporate governance reasons. This is a very serious issue. Is this the way Bank of Ireland will do business in future? The action taken by the bank was unannounced. All loans were up to date and the directors of the airport were not informed in advance of the bank's action. I will write to the Joint Committee on Finance, Public Expenditure and Reform and the Committee of Public Accounts requesting that they invite representatives of Bank of Ireland before them to answer serious questions. The bank is causing major reputational damage to the country. We know the damage the banks have caused. Last week, Ireland was ranked in the top ten countries in which to do business. Investors are asking why they should invest in a country where a bank treats its customers in this manner.
Does the Senator have a question for the Leader?
Will the Leader ask the Minister for Transport to make an urgent statement on this matter? A meeting took place this morning on the issue of statutory redundancy. The State gave money to Galway Airport to assist it in closing its affairs and making redundancy payments, yet the account in which this money was held was raided by Bank of Ireland, an institution in which the State has a stake. Let us rise up on this issue. We must not be taken for a ride by Bank of Ireland.
I support the view expressed by Senator Barrett on the Minister for Health, VHI and other charges. The Minister could be described as a poacher turned gamekeeper. No other president of the Irish Medical Organisation has negotiated, on behalf of doctors, a deal such as the golden medical card deal he negotiated in a previous capacity as IMO president. He practically blackmailed a previous Government when it announced in the budget that it would allocate medical cards to everyone aged over 70 years. He strategically demanded that general practitioners receive an outrageous amount —€600 or thereabouts — for each patient and now that he is Minister, he is paying the price.
I wish Senator Eamonn Coghlan well following his departure from the group of Independent Senators.
Does the Senator have a question for the Leader?
I am showing courtesy to a colleague who is moving from the Independent group to the real Enda party.
As the Senator knows, the matter is not relevant to the Order of Business.
I can wish the Senator well in his political career. I expect he will run for the European Parliament in 2014.
The matter is not relevant to the Order of Business. Does the Senator have a question for the Leader?
Yes. I ask the Leader to consider arranging a short debate on the non-principal private residence scheme which was introduced in 2009 in response to our financial difficulties. Uptake of the scheme has been high and many councils are receiving substantial funding from it. Given that some people did not realise they were liable to pay the charge levied under the scheme, I ask that some form of reminder be issued to members of the public.
The Senator's time has elapsed.
I request the introduction of an amnesty, not for the charge but for the surcharges imposed on those who do not register, which are extremely high. I know a person who genuinely did not realise there was a liability because the person's second home was leased. I ask the Minister to review the position, especially the €200 per month surcharge for which people are liable if they do not pay the charge. This is causing hardship for a number of people.
I welcome the announcement made yesterday by the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Pat Rabbitte, and Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Ruairí Quinn, that all second level schools will have access to high speed broadband by 2014 and it will be available in 200 schools from September 2012. As an educator, I have long campaigned for efficient, high speed connectivity to be available in all school classrooms. When I left my classroom last May, not only did I not have high speed Internet access but I did not have any Internet access. The promises made by the previous Government on foot of great ideas contained in various reports on investing in broadband in schools in the period from 2008 to 2013 never materialised.
The same schools will not have special needs assistants and guidance counsellors.
Please allow Senator Moran to continue without interruption.
One must have a teacher to go with the broadband.
The previous Government's promises did not materialise. I call on the Leader to ensure that in addition to providing all schools with high speed broadband access, all classrooms are equipped with a digital board. Sometimes we have broadband but if we do not have the digital boards and the equipment to go with it, we are really not fulfilling anything. Will they be introduced also? Will the Minister come back to the House to debate the possibility of introducing further technology into classrooms by considering laptops for every student, which is an issue I raised earlier in the year? In the long run, it would be more economical plus there would be health benefits in terms of students' backs.
I wish to ask about the heads of the Bill on personal insolvency released recently by the Minister for Justice and Equality. I heartily welcome the publication of the heads of the Bill as there is great promise in them and they contain many of the elements that a modern system should contain. They also form part of the Government's response to implementing the recommendations of the Keane report.
As many of us are aware, the proposals for reform involve the introduction of a new judicial and non-judicial bankruptcy and debt settlements system. However, I was particularly heartened to see head 132 which refers to guidelines on reasonable expenditure and essential income for debtors, of which non-judicial debt settlements must take account. This gives us scope for utilising a minimum income standard for courts dealing with households in debt. I draw the Seanad's attention to research published yesterday by the Vincentian Partnership for Social Justice on defining what such a standard should be for various household types in Ireland.
I also note the debate in the Dáil last week on Deputy Stephen Donnelly's Family Home Protection (Miscellaneous Provisions) Bill, the objective of which was to give judges some discretion when hearing cases where a mortgage lender seeks to repossess a family home. They have no discretion at the moment. Supposedly, that is a constitutional issue but the Minister has indicated he will look at it.
Will the Leader consider inviting the Minister to the Seanad to discuss these and other relevant issues prior to the publication of the Bill itself which is scheduled for the end of April? As the Minister, in his wisdom, is seeking submissions from the public, perhaps he might also come to this House to hear our views.
I also call for a debate on VHI. We have seen steady increases in charges in recent years and a number of further increases are predicted. VHI is a State company and I note what the Minister said in regard to it. However, it is not beyond being brought before this House as a special guest to explain the rationale behind the increases which we are told will continue in the future. As a State agency, it has a responsibility to explain it. It is all about information. Once people have the information, they will accept it however difficult or unpalatable it may be.
On the issue of Galway Airport——
The Senator has raised an issue already. It is the rule of the House——
It is a very brief one on the issue of Galway Airport. Senator Fidelma Healy Eames would probably be better off writing to the Garda Commissioner to ask him to investigate Bank of Ireland for fraud because what it has engaged in is actually white collar fraud.
The Senator is completely out of order.
There are plenty more like me then.
Mr. Alan Crosbie, chairman of Thomas Crosbie Holdings, said something very interesting at a conference on media diversity in Dublin yesterday.
The Senator knows the position in the House in regard to private citizens. We do not speak about people in a private capacity——
I think we may have to revisit this issue.
They have no right to defend themselves.
Okay. Try this one, a Chathaoirligh, as Churchill once said——
They have no right to defend themselves in the House.
I was not about to criticise Mr. Crosbie. I was——
I did not say the Senator was. It is not about criticism. Does the Senator have a question for the Leader?
Yes. I am very surprised at this approach, a Chathaoirligh, because I wanted to draw attention to what this gentleman said about the Internet. He said that as well as being a tool of freedom and democracy, the Internet has the capacity to destroy civil society and cause unimaginable suffering. In that context, I support and draw the Leader's attention to the excellent intervention from Senator van Turnhout today on the issue of pornography and the media. There are two ways in which children are damaged by pornography in the media. One is when children are depicted in such pornography, and it is frightening to think that 20% of Internet pornography relates to the abuse of children, as Senator van Turnhout has pointed out. The second way children are exploited is when they access inappropriate adult material. It seems quite scandalous and a real shame, to use Senator van Turnhout's word, that the Internet service providers of Ireland criticised the decision of UK counterparts to require customers to opt in before accessing such adult material. Senator van Turnhout has rightly pointed to the hypocrisy where they are quite willing to see access blocked when it comes to the infringement of copyright but they do not seem to have a sense of the wider public interest and the protection of the most vulnerable children in society.
I am disappointed that the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Deputy Frances Fitzgerald, could not go so far as to even comment on whether there are similar plans to persuade Irish Internet service providers to adopt this British model. We had legislation last week concerning the introduction of gender quotas, with which I disagreed, but I recognise that people were trying to achieve some kind of social good by shaping the environment. Why do we lack courage when it comes to trying to shape the media and the Internet environment so as to protect children from accessing unacceptable material? This is an area in which we must act and be heard clearly in these Houses. I hope the Government will take a more courageous view on the issue in due course.
I raise an issue which has received a fair bit of coverage in the past few days, which relates to an audit report from Cork County VEC. It has been shown that teachers have been paid for 1,070 hours that were not worked and over €60,000 has been paid. A person was hired to drive children to a Youthreach project despite having been convicted of rape in the UK, as there was no background check undertaken before he was employed. We are in the middle of reforming and amalgamating the VECs and we have not had a debate in this House on the future role and structure of VECs. Will the Leader arrange for the Minister for Education and Skills to come to the House to discuss the future role of VECs and how we can further improve their work? In fairness to the VECs in Cork county and city, they have done and continue to do excellent work, although the audit report highlights deficiencies in the structure of governance. We should consider the matter and it would be appropriate to have a debate in the House.
I ask the Leader if we will now see governance by press release. We had a number of debates in this House concerning the Water Services (Amendment) Bill and only last week the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government was here to discuss amendments to the Bill and the septic tank charge. Members of my party and Fianna Fáil, along with some Independents, tabled numerous amendments dealing with the €50 registration charge, calling on it to be abolished. The Minister rejected all those amendments out of hand, only to make an announcement outside the Oireachtas, which is not the way to do business. He should go further and reverse the charge completely. He should publish the relevant standards and define what grant aid is available. He should also remove the criminal sanctions in the Bill. We need a similar U-turn on the household charge. We will see people crippled with that charge and people who cannot afford to pay will end up in court. We have heard that the Minister for Justice and Equality will amend the fines legislation to allow the Government, in the case of people who cannot afford the charge, to take the money from social welfare or salary payments.
Will the Leader confirm if that is what the Government proposes? It will criminalise the people who simply cannot afford to pay the kind of charges being introduced by this Government. Will the Leader ask why the Minister did not use the opportunity he had in this House last week to make his announcement and why he made it outside the Houses of the Oireachtas?
On Safer Internet Day, I also welcome the announcement by the Ministers, Deputies Rabbitte and Quinn, that all second level schools are to receive high speed broadband. This is a great example of co-operation between Ministers and joined-up thinking by Departments. The Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources will pay for the installation and the Department for Education and Skills will pay for the operation of the scheme.
The introduction of high speed broadband will have a major impact on how teachers use ICT. It will enable video conferencing and the use of Skype together with the introduction of digital text books. This welcome investment in our education system is a great idea. Too often in the past, moneys invested in ICT have not borne fruit because planning and oversight of the service was not factored into the costs. What system of oversight and inspection will be factored into the operation of this scheme? That is the vital question for the successful operation of this welcome new initiative.
I was pleased to welcome the Cathaoirleach and the Taoiseach to my constituency and hope they will visit again. The Cathaoirleach might note that the matter I wish to raise on the Adjournment relates to the parish he visited in recent days.
I wish to raise an important issue in County Meath — the Lagan Brick workers in Kingscourt on the Meath-Cavan border. This is a very serious issue as all 25 workers were let go, without due formality, in the middle of December. Since then the workers have been maintaining a constant vigil and blockade on the brick factory in Kingscourt to assert their rights and to prevent the stripping out of the factory before they are paid their entitlements. The matter has been before the Labour Relations Commission but I understand that the talks broke down yesterday. I do not know if there have been developments today. The matter is due to go before the Labour Court.
This is an urgent issue. The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Richard Burton, responded to the issue when it was raised in the Dáil but the workers were not happy with the sense of urgency he displayed. I am calling on the Leader to engage in a debate in this House on the issue and to request the Minister to attend the House and show he is dealing with it as a matter of extreme urgency.
This is a traditional industry in the Kingscourt area. As the factory pays rates, it is an important source of income for County Meath. Little remains of the industrial production in that part of north County Meath. My understanding, although something contrary was said at the Labour Relations Commission, was that the business was relatively successful in England, where it was developed and built up, when the building boom ceased in Ireland. I understand from workers that they were kept very busy. We need to debate this issue, the loss of a traditional industry. The workers from counties, Cavan, Meath and Monaghan cannot afford to lose their jobs and the area cannot afford to lose the facility.
We need to debate the issue in the Seanad and recognise the urgency of saving those jobs. The Seanad should acknowledge these workers. The Vita Cortex workers mounted a similar protest indoors around the same time. They have had significant publicity and deservedly so, but this group of workers in County Meath have not had the same level of publicity yet they have been pursuing an outdoor blockade, including being present on Christmas Day. They deserve our support. I know all parties have visited them. We need the Government to take action.
I support the request by my colleague, Senator Fidelma Healy Eames for the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Leo Varadkar, to make a statement on the situation in Galway Airport. The dawn raid by Bank of Ireland is both unethical and unacceptable. From the reports this morning, the employees at the airport are fearful that their legitimate redundancy payments may be jeopardy. The future of the airport is also being jeopardised by the bank's action and the board is now considering recommending liquidation. This is a most serious development. The action by the bank brings into sharp focus the anecdotal evidence that the banks are indulging in practices that are putting many businesses across the country in jeopardy.
I ask the Leader to once again consider having a major debate on banking. Unless we resolve it as a matter of urgency many businesses will go to the wall with the loss of many jobs.
I note that there is a constricted opportunity for people to talk about the fiscal treaty. I support Senator Mullins and ask again for a general debate on the economy. It seems perfectly clear that market capitalism, in its present form, is in a state of collapse. It simply is not serving the interests of the people. In our country we have the kind of situation in Galway airport with which I agree, elective surgery is being cancelled and health contributions are being enormously increased. Anybody who lends even one ear to the wireless will hear voices like that of the man in Connemara who said he would like to pay but he had no money and could not pay. A woman whose mother has cancer has not the petrol to visit and must rely on her neighbours to bring her. She burns DVDs and shoes in her grate to keep her children warm. I thank God for the voices of those who, at a meeting in the west of Ireland, said this is all true but we must not just attack the German people but the banks. There should be solidarity around the people. It is notable that the former centres of alleged communism, China and Russia, have now totally given in to monopoly State capitalism. We in the West should counter it by moving to the left, moving on behalf of the people and moving in solidarity with the oppressed. I agree with the commentators who talk about the situation in Athens and say it is appalling to see people, including former professionally employed people, living in cardboard boxes. What more can they do? Where are these people being driven? Who are the dictators? Where is democratic accountability? That is the debate that we need to have in this House and I hope that we can.
I ask the Leader to bring the following issue to the attention of the Minister, Deputy Varadkar. The M1 Dublin to Belfast route is the busiest road in the country but its central reservation is broken at seven or eight locations between Dundalk and the Border. I refer to the cheese cutter type fence at the centre of the road. Vehicle traffic could veer off into oncoming traffic causing a major accident. Some of the breakages have existed for the past two years. I hope there will not be a major accident in the meantime.
I support Senator Mullins in his call for a specific debate on banking. I also refer to the bluster and smokescreen that was announced last night by the Minister, Deputy Phil Hogan, in Deputy Mattie McGrath's constituency. I do not know why he announced it there.
The only reason was he was there.
The Minister has announced that there will be a reduction of €50 to €5 in the registration fee in respect of the septic tank charge.
Is the Senator disappointed?
He is delighted.
Senator Ó Domhnaill to continue, without interruption.
I welcome the reduction.
Is the Senator seeking a debate on it?
I welcome the reduction but I do not know why the Minister did not have the courtesy to accept a Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin amendment seeking no fee. He spent over 20 hours debating the Water Services (Amendment) Bill with us yet he announced the fee reduction at a public meeting in a rural constituency instead of here. He has not dealt with the real issues. His announcement was a smokescreen that has backfired badly on the Government because rural Ireland is up in arms today. The real issue of the septic tank Bill is standards and the cost of meeting them and he has done nothing to address it. He tried a smokescreen but it backfired on him. Let us see what the standards will be when they are published in a fortnight. I guarantee that rural Ireland will not take any more bluff and bluster from him.
He has outsmarted the Opposition again.
He climbed down under pressure.
I want to raise a matter of concern that relates to the Luas connector. It can be added to the list of issues that need to be brought to the attention of the Minister, Deputy Varadkar. An Bord Pleanála has raised concerns about this issue. The original plan was that the Luas connector would be built after the DART underground and metro north projects. If that does not happen, certain issues might mean that the connector will have to be closed at some future stage. I would like to get some clarity on the issue from the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. I hope it will be possible to ensure we do not do things in reverse in this regard.
The Minister for Health recently appointed a new head of the organ donation and procurement office. What has happened to the Bill that was drawn up to deal with the question of whether it should be possible to increase the number of organ donations in this country? The debate on the Bill in this House was adjourned almost three years ago to facilitate public consultation on the matter. Last year, just six hearts and eight lungs were transplanted in Irish hospitals. That is a tiny fraction of what is required. People in hospitals are waiting for organs to be donated, but that is not happening. We know what the answer is. It is in the Minister's hands.
When the Bill was introduced in this House three years ago, the debate was adjourned to give us an opportunity to hear what the public felt about it. We have not heard a word on it since then. It was not mentioned in the programme for Government. The rate of organ donation in Spain is approximately twice that in this country. That cannot be attributed solely to that country's presumed consent legislation. The role of co-ordinators in Spanish hospitals and other factors are also relevant. If we make similar progress, we can save lives. Can the Leader urge the Minister for Health to grab this opportunity? No real cost is associated with it. It can proceed very readily. There was almost full agreement in this House on the Bill we were considering. We have not heard a word on it since the then Minister said public consultation was required. Can we make sure something happens in this area? Progress can be made.
I would like to make another point. I am not taking up a different topic. I have raised this matter previously. Every day, each of the 60 Members of this House receives an Order Paper in an individually addressed envelope. I imagine the same thing happens in the Dáil. I cannot believe the waste this must entail. It just does not make sense. When my daughter held a birthday party for our granddaughter the other day, she insisted that those who had brought presents had to bring the wrapping paper home with them. That shows the extent to which she is anti-paper. It seems to me that we are unaware of the significant amount of waste that is taking place. We can start to do something about it by getting rid of the envelopes I have mentioned.
I would like to address the point Senator Ó Domhnaill made about septic tanks. I welcome the Minister's decision to change the fee.
It was a climbdown.
Last week, Marian Harkin, MEP, made the valid point that it is very convenient for members of Fianna Fáil to blame the present Government, even though it is their fault that the last Administration failed to introduce legislation in this area. They kept knocking it back. They blamed the owners of septic tanks for the water pollution. If anyone reads the judgment on the court case — I do not know how many Opposition Senators have read it — they will learn that the previous Government claimed that septic tanks were at fault for the bad water in Ireland. That is not the case. The pollution was caused by the last Government's lack of investment in urban water schemes and——
If that is the case, there was no need for the legislation we passed last week.
We had no choice. I can ask the Minister to explain that to the Senator. We had no choice. The case that was made by the Opposition was flawed. Marian Harkin, who is an Independent MEP from a rural area, talks a lot of sense. She made that point very clearly.
She is disagreeing with the Minister, Deputy Hogan.
We all disagree at times.
Ba mhaith liom aontú leis an méid a dúirt na Seanadóirí Healy Eames agus Mullins maidir le cás Aerfort na Gaillimhe. Mar eolas dóibh, tá mé tar éis rún a chur ar aghaidh maidir leis an aerfort. B'fhéidir gur féidir liom an t-ábhar seo a phlé ar an Athló amárach. Beidh mé sásta mo chuid ama a roinnt leo, más mian leo agus má ghlacann an Cathaoirleach leis.
Go raibh maith agat.
Tá an cás seo iontach tábhachtach.
On Galway Airport, I hope a matter I submitted for discussion on the Adjournment tomorrow will be given favourable consideration. I am willing to share time in any such discussion. When the Seanad debated operational expenditure, OPEX, grants for airports I expressed my concern to the Minister for Transport that a cut in the grant to Galway Airport would place it in a difficult position. The subsequent decision to reduce the grant, which I would like to discuss with the Minister, may have caused some of the current difficulties at the airport, including the departure of the chief executive before Christmas. The airport's woes have gone from bad to worse. Workers have been subject to questionable treatment and had to engage in a sit-in to have their redundancy rights confirmed. I understand the Department has already paid redundancy moneys to Galway Airport.
We need to ascertain what the Government will do to address this issue. If we are serious about regional development and job creation in Galway and the west, we must have an airport in the region. Will the Government preside over a policy that will result in the closure of Galway Airport? That would not be good enough for people in Galway or the west. Ba mhaith linn go mbeadh an t-Aire istigh anseo le go mbeimís in ann é sin a phlé leis.
I ask the Leader to consider inviting the Minister of State at the Department of Health, Deputy Róisín Shortall, to the House to debate the recently published report on alcohol sponsorship in sport, which makes a number of valid recommendations, not least of which are recommendations to phase out sponsorship of sports events by drink companies and introduce a 9 p.m. threshold for alcohol advertising on television. In recent days, the media also reported on stark statistics produced by international bodies which show that alcohol abuse and even alcohol consumption at levels which most drinkers would assume to be minimal is leading to many forms of cancers. The statistics are horrific and it would be timely if the Minister of State, who has commendably placed the issue of drug abuse at the top of the agenda, were to return to the House to outline what legislative proposals, if any, she may wish to introduce in response to the recommendations of the advisory body.
I will finish on a positive note from the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association, which, I am pleased to note, has managed to secure sufficient funding to continue its excellent work. The association has pointed out that while our reputation as being a nation of boozers may be justified, Ireland still has the highest percentage of non-drinkers in the European Union. There is, therefore, some hope that those who abuse drink will see the folly of their ways. This can only be done through legislation, however, especially on sport sponsorship by alcohol companies which is commonplace. The name of a drink company which sponsors a certain sport has almost been included in the dictionary. While I do not have anything against the company or the sport in question, of which I am a keen follower, it is wrong that drink companies are involved in the sponsorship of sport. I ask that the Minister of State come to the House at the earliest opportunity to allow the House to debate the report of the alcohol advisory council.
Senator Darragh O'Brien referred to a report on the attendance record of Ministers in Brussels. I presume the report relates to the records of individual Ministers rather than countries.
That is correct.
While I am not aware of the report, I will certainly read it. The case has been proved that Ministers did not attend many of the European bodies.
That is not true.
The Government has attempted to play catch-up in that regard and has made significant progress in solving the problems that emerged when the previous Government was in office.
The Leader does not believe that.
Those are lies.
Senator Bacik raised the potential for greater trade opportunities with China. I will certainly endeavour to have the Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Deputy Joe Costello, come to the House to address that issue. I am sure he would be quite willing to do so for the first time as Minister of State.
Senators van Turnhout and Rónán Mullen referred to the Internet and Internet service providers. I agree totally with them on the need to block child abuse material on the Internet, which should be a priority. I will try to get the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, Deputy Pat Rabbitte, or the Minister of State at the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Deputy Sean Sherlock, to come to the House for a debate on that whole issue.
Senators Barrett and Conway referred to driving down VHI costs. I understand the Milliman report was eventually placed in the Oireachtas Library, which I arranged for Senator Barrett. We should discuss it during a debate with the Minister for Health.
Senators Healy Eames, Martin Conway, Mullins and Ó Clochartaigh referred to the situation in Galway Airport, which was raised here last week when I described the situation and the actions of Bank of Ireland as deplorable and I have not changed my mind on it. We will certainly raise the matter with the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, Deputy Leo Varadkar. Senator Healy Eames also mentioned she would write to the relevant committee to ask it to deal with this matter.
Senator Leyden referred to the second home charge. The birds in the trees should know about the second home charge at this stage. I do not believe there will be any——
The birds in the trees are not paying it.
There will be no reduction or no amnesty in that regard.
Senators Mary Moran and Jim D'Arcy welcomed the roll-out of high-speed broadband to all schools by 2014 and referred to the need for digital boards. I agree totally with Senator D'Arcy that there is a need for oversight and inspection of the scheme when it is up and running. That is of paramount importance.
Senator Zappone referred to the personal insolvency Bill. I understand public hearings on the heads of the Bill will commence next week at the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality. We have a number of Members on that committee and I am sure they will take part and offer their opinions on the heads of the Bill. Like Senator Zappone, I noted Deputy Stephen Donnelly's Bill last week. He is to be complimented on it, as is any Member of either House who introduces a Private Members' Bill. I encourage more of them to do so.
Senator Rónán Mullen called for a debate on the Internet but we will have a debate on media standards, to which he referred also, on 22 February. Senator Colm Burke called for a debate on the future role of VECs.
Senators Cullinane, Ó Domhnaill, Harte and others referred to the Water Services (Amendment) Bill. The registration fee for those who register before 30 June 2012 is now €5 and from July 2012 to March 2013, it will be €50. I am sure everybody welcomes the reduction.
It is a pity the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government did not tell anyone when he was here last week.
The Minister has also outlined that unless there is evidence of endangerment to human health or the environment, the septic tank system in place will pass inspection. There is no question of applying the Environmental Protection Agency's 2009 code of practice to older systems. That is clear to everybody.
The legislation is primary.
If some people choose not to listen to the Minister or agree with him, that is their——
That is not what he said when he first came here.
I am sure Members will continue to misinterpret what the Minister said even before he came into the House.
The Leader to continue, without interruption.
People misinterpreted what the Minister said before he came into the House and they have continued to misinterpret him, even after he attended the House.
He could have done it here.
They are continuing to misinterpret him.
Last week he said different European standards had to be put in place, now it is about a fiver.
He is changing the record.
The Leader to continue, without interruption.
We still have all this bluff and bluster from Members on the other side who continue to scaremonger.
On a point of order, it is disingenuous of any Member of this House to accuse anyone of scaremongering——
That is not a point of order.
——when none of us knows what the standards will be.
It is government by press release.
Senator Ó Domhnaill should resume his seat.
I will accept it if the Leader can clarify what the standards will be. We do not know what they will be.
Why was the announcement not made in this House?
The Leader to continue, without interruption.
I note Senator Byrne's point about the brick factory. Senator Brennan has referred to the fact that the central reservation on the M1 is broken in at least seven places. That is a serious matter which we will raise with the National Roads Authority. That is the relevant body and it should be notified of such dangers to motorists.
Senator Quinn raised the organ donation Bill. I will check the status of that legislation. Three years is a long time to wait for a public consultation. The Senator will note that the Bill is not on the Government's list of proposed legislation, but I will endeavour to find out what the situation is.
I could not agree more with the Senator on the envelopes we continue to receive.
Brown or otherwise.
The matter was raised at the Committee on Procedure and Privileges and we will raise it there again. There should be no need to send out the Order Paper in envelopes. I cannot see why it cannot be placed in Members' pigeon holes for collection.
Senator Mooney referred to sports sponsorship by the alcohol industry, as well as the work of the alcohol advisory body. I will endeavour to have the Minister of State, Deputy Shortall, attend the House to inform us of what legislation is proposed in this regard. Senator Mooney has said we have the highest percentage of non-alcohol drinkers in the EU, which might be forgotten by many commentators.