Charlie O'Connor (Dublin South West, Fianna Fail)

I welcome the opportunity to make a brief contribution to a very important debate and like my Green Party colleague, Deputy Ciarán Cuffe, I commend the Labour Party in that regard. I thank the Minister of State, Deputy Dick Roche, for sharing his time and commend the Government amendment. It is important we welcome the Government's commitment to increase the number of Dáil sittings in July, which the public will want. Deputy David Stanton might have to cancel his holidays but I have not had to do so. I will be happy to be here, and it is important we are here. For a few weeks after the Dáil rises, we will all be at committee meetings dealing with the business of the country and of our communities, which is important. Let us not be too cynical. The decision will be welcomed and it will be interesting to see how the media handles it tomorrow.

Other colleagues spoke about the events of the past week. I am as disappointed as anybody. There was a very strong "No" vote in Dublin South-West, as there has tended to be in referenda over the years. Our job is to try to get our message across, which I have been doing over the past few days. As I went about Dublin South-West, particularly the Tallaght region, over the past few days, people were not talking to me about the aftermath of Lisbon as much as the issues which concern them, such as the economy, jobs, infrastructure and facilities. I wish the Minister for Finance, Deputy Brian Lenihan, well because he will have a difficult few months and will have to wrestle with the challenges of the economy.

Other colleagues will make important points in this debate but I always go back to my political roots and am always reminded of the work of my predecessor, Chris Flood. Regardless of the state of the economy, particularly in times which may be more challenging than usual, we must remember our commitment to social inclusion policies. I live in a constituency in which I have always sung that particular hymn. In the current political and economic climate, it is important we remember that. I hope the Fianna Fáil-led Administration will continue to do what the party has always done, namely, to look after the vulnerable and those who are under much pressure.

My fellow Dub, the former Taoiseach, Deputy Bertie Ahern, often used to say in regard to social inclusion that at a time when all boats are rising, we must remember the little boats. If all boats are being somewhat battered, although I am quite confident about the Government's ability to deal with that, we must also remember the little boats. I will say to the Minister for Finance and his colleagues, in particular, the Minister for Social and Family Affairs, that, as we move towards budget time, we must remember the need to continue to finance education, health and social welfare in a special way and that we must look after the vulnerable and those who will need our help even more. I am glad to welcome the commitment in the Government amendment to protect the poor and vulnerable in our society as evidenced by the significant resources always allocated to the areas I mentioned.

I refer to disability because it is important we recognise the need to look after the vulnerable in our society, which we continue to do. I often examine the programme for Government to ensure we are going in the right direction. I read today that on disability matters the Government is determined, according to the programme, to continue to prioritise the interests of people with disabilities over the next five years through a series of significant measures. The Government is committed to ensuring that the strategy is driven and managed from a whole of Government perspective and it will be overseen and supported by the Department of the Taoiseach. I expect the Government will honour these commitments. I know the disability community is awaiting a decision by the Department of Health and Children on the release of €50 million which was to be made available this year and I hope the Minister for Health and Children will examine this. Even at a time when the economy is being challenged, let us look after those we should be looking after.

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