Bernard Durkan (Kildare North, Fine Gael)

I will refer to the legislation in a moment. If the Ceann Comhairle was not continually interrupting me, I would have concluded long ago. That is the worst of interrupting a poor old fellow from the country.

There is a willingness on the part of the European institutions to be helpful. They have provided assistance in other countries which suffered similar difficulties. Will the Taoiseach provide an indication with regard to the degree of urgency which might be applied in respect of addressing existing issues and preventing future catastrophes in the areas which were worst affected by the recent flooding? Two of the relevant items of legislation are the environmental liability Bill and the environmental (miscellaneous provisions) Bill. Effectively, the Taoiseach is the only person who can provide an indication with regard to what will happen in respect of this matter.

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