Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I wish to advise the House of the following matters in respect of which notice has been given under Standing Order 21 and the name of the Member in each case: (1) Deputy James Bannon - the need for the Minister for Education and Science to reconsider the decision to suppress the eighth mainstream teacher post in the convent primary school, Rochfortbridge, County Westmeath from September 2009; (2) Deputy Leo Varadkar - regarding the ongoing delays with the renewal of the bilateral agreement on adoptions between Ireland and Vietnam, the need for the Minister to assure the House that his Department is now satisfied that a new bilateral agreement will be in place with Vietnam before the summer recess; (3) Deputy Frank Feighan - if the Minister will ensure special needs assistants already in place in both national schools and second level in County Roscommon and County Leitrim will remain in place for September 2009 and whether the Minister is aware every SNA plays a vital role in the classroom and any reduction will be a retrograde step for these pupils; (4) Deputy Mattie McGrath - the refusal of the CEO of the Health Service Executive to meet with the Oireachtas Members of Tipperary South despite many requests to do so to date; (5) Deputy Chris Andrews - to ask the Minister to comment on the steps that are being taken to combat the growing phenomenon of social isolation within urban communities and to outline the measures that are being put in place to ensure people have access to vital social infrastructure in urban areas; (6) Deputy Jimmy Deenihan - the failure of the Government to roll out the national speed camera programme despite the fact that the successful tenderer was approved over 12 months ago; (7) Deputy Joe Costello - the need for the Department of Education and Science to open a book of condolence for the victims of child abuse arising from the revelations of the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse; (8) Deputy Ulick Burke - the urgent need for the Minister for Health and Children, Deputy Harney to indicate her plans for UCHG since its designation as a centre of excellence for the provision of cancer treatment for the west and north-west areas following the announcement of proposed cutbacks of €15 million; (9) Deputy Michael D. Higgins - an buille tubaistéach do mhuintir na Gaeltachta agus an Gaeilge má dhiultaíonn an Rialtas airgead a chur ar fáil chun nuachtán i nGaeilge a choinneáill ag foilsiú; (10) Deputies Seán Sherlock and Brian O'Shea - plans by Bus Éireann to suspend the Waterford to Cork bus route which caters for people travelling from Dungarvan to Mallow accommodating a number of towns and villages along the way and the fact that the suspension of this service will leave many people without access to vital goods and services as this bus is their means of transport to neighbouring towns; (11) Deputy Joe McHugh - the need to discuss why farmers are liable to pay interest on the full loan amount under the farm waste management scheme, in view of the fact that farmers entered into agreements, which were observed by the farmers, with the Government to have sheds completed by December 2008, and to debate the argument that farmers should be liable to pay interest only on the section of loans that exclude the Government's contribution; (12) Deputy Pádraic McCormack - the HSE proposal for the centralisation of medical card services to Dublin; (13) Deputies Simon Coveney, Mary Alexandra White and Jan O'Sullivan - the treatment of young people with spinal deformity at Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, Dublin; (14) Deputy Michael McGrath - the need for the HSE to prioritise the provision of capital funding for the planned new health centre in Carrigaline, County Cork; (15) Deputy Pat Breen - anti-social behaviour in Ennis and the need for the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform to clarify if the necessary resources are being made available to the Garda Síochána to deal with recent incidents in the town; (16) Deputy Niall Collins - the need to establish the customs and border pre-clearance facility at Shannon Airport as soon as possible; (17) Deputy Tom Hayes - in light of the serious inconvenience to farmers, and the threat to jobs in the Tipperary area, the need for the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to outline his future plans for the Department offices in Tipperary Town, which are centrally located and essential for farmers across a huge agricultural area, as well as providing key highly skilled employment in the South Tipperary; (18) Deputy Fergus O'Dowd - the need to establish an inquiry into the sexual abuse of patients at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda, County Louth; (19) Deputy David Stanton - to ask the Minister for Education and Science to debate the need for teachers dealing with special needs children under the home tuition scheme run by his Department to have appropriate training and experience especially when teaching very young children with autism and will he make a statement on the matter; and (20) Deputy Jim O'Keeffe - the teacher complement at Darrara Agricultural College, County Cork.

The matters raised by Deputies Simon Coveney, Mary Alexandra White and Jan O'Sullivan, Fergus O'Dowd and Jim O'Keeffe have been selected for discussion.