Tim O'Malley (Limerick East, Progressive Democrats)

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter which highlights once again the need for a high level of awareness of fire safety and fire precautions in the home.

The regulation of the communications sector is a matter for the Commission for Communication Regulation and I cannot speak for that body in this matter. However, I understand from media reports that there is a technical problem with telephone equipment supplied to customers by NTL which could have fire safety implications and that they have contacted their customers and instructed them to disconnect the equipment. From a fire safety point of view, it is desirable that customers comply with the instruction from NTL and disconnect the equipment. If they have not already done so, I strongly advise them to do so immediately.

It would not be appropriate for me to comment on how the company should deal with this matter into the future. However, it appears that the company acted promptly on discovering the problem. It is a sobering statistic in this context that in 2003 more than 1,300 fires were attributed to problems with electrical equipment and electrical wiring. The discovery of this problem is timely as it comes in the immediate aftermath of the National Safety Council's fire safety week. This was a joint exercise with the Northern Ireland Fire Brigade which focused on the issue of fire safety in the community and reminded us of the danger fire poses for all of us. It is a sad statistic that in 2003, 51 people died in fires on the island of Ireland, many of which could and should have been prevented.

Prevention is always better than cure and we must continue to get the message across in our communities about the dangers of fire and the need for a proactive approach to fire safety in our homes.

Every year, fire brigades attend approximately 10,000 domestic fires. Each of these is a disaster for the household involved; even where there is no death or injury, the disruption and costs involved can be immense. The sad thing is that most of these fires just should not happen. I mentioned electrical fires already; other very common causes of domestic fires are unclean chimneys, failure to use fire guards and accidents involving cigarette smoking. A basic common sense approach to fire safety housekeeping could eliminate these disasters. This is the message which the Government, the fire authorities and the National Safety Council are constantly trying to get across.

Another key message is the need to have early warning systems such as smoke alarms installed and in working order in our homes. If we do that, we can and will save lives and we will be well on the way to significantly reducing the number of fire fatalities in our communities. Analysis of the fire fatalities in domestic premises in this country indicates that a smoke alarm was either not present or was not working in the majority of cases. This is a tragic fact from which we all must learn.

Fire safety in the home is the responsibility of the individual householder. Better awareness of the dangers of fire and of fire hazards, together with common sense fire prevention practices, the installation and maintenance of smoke alarms and having an escape plan, can all help to prevent and reduce the number of fires and the consequent tragic fatalities and injuries. I would ask all Members of this House to play their part in disseminating this fire safety message whenever and wherever the opportunity arises.

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