Fiona O'Loughlin (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I extend a welcome to the ambassador and the guests in the Gallery.

I have tried to raise a Commencement matter relating to Garda matters for the second time. I accept that the Cathaoirleach has guidelines that he has to abide by but it is regrettable that we have a situation where we cannot have the Minister for Justice to come to the House to discuss, in any way, policy on policing in this country. The last time that my Commencement matter was not taken I called on the Minister for Justice to come to the House for a debate or even discuss a motion on policing in terms of both the new potential areas that are coming in and, indeed, other matters. There is no doubt that we need our gardaí to keep us safe and secure. We need them patrolling our streets and roads and we have to support them. We live in very challenging times. Every time that a garda starts a day or night shift, he or she does not know what he or she will be faced with or what will come across his or her desk.

County Kildare is completely under-resourced when it comes to gardaí. The county has the lowest number of gardaí per head of population in the country so it is not just that we have low numbers the same as elsewhere. It is an historic situation that needs to be addressed. As gardaí gather in Westport, which is the Leader's home county, I feel they are not getting that support. I also feel that the way the Commissioner handled the infamous bicycle case was wrong. I still believe that the Minister should be in Westport engaging with gardaí.

Sulky racing is an issue that I have raised previously. Unfortunately, it is still taking place. I was horrified to read reports recently of sulky racing taking part on a blueway. Our blueways and greenways are fantastic assets to this country and the countryside. They support tourism and are for use by local people. Sulky racing on them would dissuade people from using them. More rules and regulations should be introduced in the interest of public safety and animal welfare.

Lastly, I wish to raise to the volume of red tape faced by operators in the early childhood care sector. Many of these small operators, which are the backbone of the sector, do their own accounts in the main. However, those who signed up for the core funding model must supply a full chartered set of accounts. That means these providers must spend 80% of their time on administration as opposed to with the children. The Department of children should examine this requirement to see how best it can support providers going forward, particularly small operators.