Michael McCarthy (Labour)

I refer to No. 2 on the Order Paper and express the thanks of the Labour Party group to the Leader for arranging this debate. Senator O'Meara, in particular, has been seeking such a debate for some time. It is timely and appropriate that we acknowledge the Leader's endeavours in this regard.

I concur with the remarks of the leader of the Fine Gael group. Yesterday's developments in the matter of the national stadium were welcome. The redevelopment of Lansdowne Road was always the common-sense approach. The whole saga went on for some time. The petty squabbling and different points of view associated with the project have been a lesson to us. If a decision such as this is to be made, it is not right that it is dragged on for such a length of time, allowing petty squabbling to prevail. The FAI and the IRFU deserve to be congratulated on the manner in which they conducted themselves throughout. Yesterday was an important day not only for them but for sports fans and the entire country. I wonder what would have happened to the €38 million in funding that was withheld from the GAA in 2001. It was obviously a carrot-and-stick approach at a time when the whole idea was still up in the air. It would be interesting to know the Government's intentions for that sum of money.

Yesterday my colleague, Senator Tuffy, raised the issue of parasuicide. In 2002 alone, 8,500 people were admitted to accident and emergency units suffering from injuries sustained while attempting to take their own lives. This is a frightening statistic. The issue deserves closer analysis and debate. I ask the Leader to use her offices to organise a debate on this serious issue.