Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

While I thank the Taoiseach for his reply, before proceeding any further Members should note some of these questions have been awaiting a reply for at least six months. There have been ongoing cancellations for various reasons of the weekly Taoiseach's questions and they never have been rescheduled. It is a demonstration of the Government's ongoing disdain for this House and for accountability to the House.

All Members welcome the recent executive action by President Obama regarding the undocumented and migration in general. It has removed some of the most immediate pressure from undocumented people in the United States but as Members are aware, it only goes as far as presidential control of the Executive branch extends and the substantive issue of providing long-term security to the undocumented has not been addressed. In his reply, the Taoiseach mentioned meeting various members of Congress and I am worried by what appears to be an increasing trend. Certainly, the current anti-immigrant tone of some of the statements made by presidential candidates, for example, is not something that would give one hope that the Republican Party will end its blocking of comprehensive immigration reform any time soon and that has been one of the major blockages to immigration reform. We should join in the condemnation of statements that demonise and vilify economic migrants, from wherever they are, and I ask the Taoiseach to agree to this request. Some highly inflammatory comments have been made in the context of the presidential election in the United States by certain candidates regarding economic migrants, which is unacceptable and we should be forthright in our views in this regard. The plight of the undocumented is a matter on which work should continue. The Taoiseach has had a series of meetings but stated he did not meet the lobby groups on that occasion. I am not sure whether the ebb and flow of elections will make a deal possible but lobbying does matter. What has been prepared in respect of lobbying the new leadership of the House of Representatives? As the Taoiseach is aware, there has been a change recently and he might indicate to Members whether the Government has fresh plans to lobby on behalf of the undocumented.

In his reply, the Taoiseach also mentioned a meeting that involved a number of key scientists and this is a good opportunity to comment on the awarding of the Nobel Prize for medicine to County Donegal native, Professor Bill Campbell, who is one of a significant number of Irish research scientists working in American universities and research facilities. Professor Campbell's work is benefiting millions and the warm congratulations of the House are due to him. The Taoiseach may be unaware he did not receive acknowledgement in the Government's St. Patrick's Day science event and perhaps this will be remedied or addressed next year. He deserves some acknowledgement by the State for his achievements, at least an acknowledgement on St. Patrick's Day, which he did not receive this year. From 1997 onwards, a major policy shift was made in attracting home Irish researchers but this has gone directly into reverse over the past three years. There has been a significant change in science and research policy in Ireland by the Government. As a petition signed by more than 800 internationally recognised competitive and leading researchers in Irish universities stated earlier this year, Government policy is pushing them directly out of the country. I reiterate that 800 people signed that petition. The problem is that basic research, exactly the kind of research undertaken by Professor Campbell, has been downgraded for funding and the area of non-commercially linked basic research in medicine has been removed from funding schemes. Ireland's most internationally successful research group, the immunology research centre in Trinity College, was unable to secure funding from the main Science Foundation Ireland scheme despite being the facility ranked number one in the world. It has had that leading position because of its publications and so on for quite some time now. Consequently, I put it to the Taoiseach that when he meets American leaders and when he travels to the United States, it is time to stop the speeches and telling people about our commitment to basic research and pure science but he should do something to keep research scientists in Ireland. This is a significant issue for the future of the country and is one on which the Taoiseach has fallen down.

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