Dáil debates

Wednesday, 8 July 2009

Photo of Brendan HowlinBrendan 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 John O'Mahony - the urgent need for funding to be provided to the communities in Newport, Glenisland, Glenhest and surrounding areas following the severe damage caused last week by the flash floods; (2) Deputy Lucinda Creighton - the commitment of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to introduce legislation for a directly elected Mayor of Dublin in 2010; (3) Deputy Tom Hayes - to ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs to outline the delays in releasing application forms, processing applications and making payments in relation to the back to school clothing and footwear allowance this year and to outline her plans regarding the lateness of payments under the scheme in South Tipperary and other areas; (4) Deputy Joe Costello - the need for the Minister for Health and Children to resolve the bed crisis in the Mater and St. James's Hospital; (5) Deputy James Bannon - the need for the Minister for Education and Science to consider the establishment of an educational campus for the benefit of the Longford region in the recently closed Connolly Barracks, Longford, County Longford; (6) Deputy Simon Coveney - to ask the Minister for Environment and Local Government to outline in detail where stands the Cork Docklands project now, what the Government is planning to do to incentivise investment though taxation and gateway funding for this project, where the report completed last summer by the Docklands policy committee is and if he will outline its findings and the plans his Department has to work with the local authority on its ambitious plans for the Cork Docklands project; (7) Deputy John Perry - to ask the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government to outline the guidelines in place or planned for local government authorities in the matter of the cost benefit analysis procedures and methods to be followed in assessing proposals for their larger capital expenditure projects, and if he will consider extending the remit of the Comptroller and Auditor General to include the larger local authority capital expenditure projects; (8) Deputy Bernard Allen - the situation where there are 3,700 persons awaiting optical services on the northside of Cork city and the explanation given that applications could not be processed because the clerical officer is on maternity leave, unlike the southside of Cork city where there is no waiting list and services are offered within one month of application; (9) Deputy Michael D. Higgins - the detention by the Israeli authorities of two Irish citizens, Mairéad Maguire and Derek Graham, who were aboard a vessel on its way to Gaza; the need for the Government to protest to the Israeli authorities at the detention of the two people which took place in international waters and the need for the Government to secure the release of the property of those detained; (10) Deputy Thomas McEllistrim - the need to fast-track the community consultation element of the national strategy for service user involved in the health service; (11) Deputy Aengus Ó Snodaigh - the need to reinstate the funding to allow six clients of the Walkinstown Association, Dublin, to make the transition from rehabilitative training to Dar services and address other cuts in the service; (12) Deputies Mary Upton and Joanna Tuffy - the need to reconsider the decision of the HSE to close the newly refurbished Beech Ward at Cherry Orchard Hospital, Dublin, during the summer period and to review plans to reduce respite care beds at Cherry Orchard Hospital; (13) Deputy Michael D'Arcy - the non-payment of sub-contractors involved with the construction of two primary schools in Gorey, County Wexford; (14) Deputy Ciarán Lynch - to ask the Minister for Finance if it is his intention to provide sufficient finance to continue the provision of area co-ordinators in the family mediation service in the southern and western regions and if he will make a statement on the matter.

The matters raised by Deputies Thomas McEllistrim, Aengus Ó Snodaigh, Mary Upton, Joanna Tuffy and Michael D'Arcy have been selected for discussion.