James Bannon (Fine Gael)

I support my colleagues' call for a debate on crime, which is escalating. There has not been a day since the Seanad reconvened after the summer recess when a debate on crime has not been called for. I hope the Leader will accede to that in the near future.

In regard to the mid-term evaluation of the BMW operational programme, some of the results of the review are alarming. Little funding has been drawn down in several areas, including rural development, e-commerce, agriculture and waste management. A number of good recommendations have been put forward by the authors of the report and it is important we debate them and free up funding for the various programmes throughout the region. We need to look at the removal of administrative obstacles because if we do not, the funding will go back to the EU and it will not look on us favourably in the next round of Structural Funds.