Clare Daly (Dublin North, Socialist Party)

That means people who work for the State and who are armed were assembled against elderly, rural people who were out to cut turf. Does the Minister deem this to be an acceptable practice that an armed response unit should be sent to respond to ordinary citizens engaged in peaceful protests? That is the nub of the issue and what led to it. The reality is that this House asked the Government to implement an arrangement and to seek a transitional arrangement in the European Union to allow turf cutters to continue to cut turf while an alternative plan was being constructed. As everyone knows, it is now common knowledge that the Government did not do this. The incidents last night were not incited by anyone; ordinary people were responding to the Government's lack of action on a decision made by this House. That is where the responsibility lies. If the Government thinks it can achieve things by heavy-handed tactics against ordinary citizens, I am sorry to say it is very much on the wrong path, as the turf cutters have been strengthened by the incident. They are resolved to moving towards dialogue and a peaceful solution, but the Minister must meet them half way. Carrying on the way the State did last night can only serve to alienate otherwise law-abiding and decent citizens. I would like the Minister to answer the question on whether he will continue to use the armed response unit against peaceful protesters, be it on the issue of turf cutting or others.

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