Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Given that this week the climate change talks at the Conference of Parties, COP 21, in Paris, colleagues will join me in hoping for a successful outcome from those talks. We are getting optimistic reports that new targets for global emissions reduction will be set there. It has been really good to see so much input from civil society. Many Irish activists went to Paris. There has been a great deal of dynamic activity by civil society groups around the talks. That is really welcome given all the security concerns. If time permits in the new year will the Leader arrange a debate on the outcome of the talks and the new targets?

I welcome the announcement by the Minister of Health, Deputy Varadkar, about the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill 2015. Many colleagues in this House have called for this Bill. When will it be brought before us? It will impose important restrictions on advertising of alcohol, minimum pricing and so on. It will probably receive cross-party support.

Can we have a debate on crime in the new year? Several significant reports have been published recently, in particular the Garda Síochána inspectorate report which was highly critical of so many aspects of Garda and policing practice. Today, one of the three members of the inspectorate spoke about the difficulty in bringing prosecutions in a timely fashion, given computer system delays and talking about better deployment of gardaí. The Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Equality and Defence has held several debates on different aspects of Garda Inspectorate reports but I would like this House to debate this report.

I welcome the announcement by the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Fitzgerald, this week that the practice of imprisoning people for non-payment of fines would end in January with the commencement at last of the Fines (Payment and Recovery) Act 2014 and the putting in place by the Courts Service of the necessary systems to ensure that alternative mechanisms can be used. The Law Reform Commission report on search warrants has some very practical suggestions for greater efficiency in the criminal justice system.