Ulick Burke (Fine Gael)

Will the Leader consider extending the time for the discussion of the Hanly report? Two and three quarter hours are scheduled for that debate but that may not be sufficient, as many Senators will want to express their views on the impact of the report on the health services all over the country and not just in the pilot areas.

As a matter of urgency I ask the Leader to contact the Minister for Transport in relation to the horrific accident in Clare over the weekend, where two lives were tragically lost and others were seriously injured. I extend our sympathies to the families of all involved on their tragic loss. The significant issue is the ease with which young people can purchase cars of that kind for very little money. Those young people travelled from Galway to Clare and crashed, probably at high speed, causing this tragedy. It is important the Minister explains to the Seanad the opportunities he has had to revise current legislation or to introduce new or emergency legislation to make it impossible for such accidents to occur again. This was not a unique situation; it happened before but thankfully the gardaí intercepted the car before a tragedy like last weekend's could occur. The Leader should treat this as an urgent matter to ensure another accident cannot happen.