Kathleen O'Meara (Labour)

I support the point made by Senator Brian Hayes on the EU summit. In particular, I wish the Taoiseach and the Irish Presidency well in advancing unity and agreement on the proposed constitution. Last December, it seemed as if this would not be achieved in the six months of the Irish Presidency. However, if progress can be achieved in the coming days and weeks, we would fully support the Taoiseach. It would be useful to have a debate on the outstanding issues as soon as possible.

When is it proposed to take the Electoral (Amendment) Bill, which deals with electronic voting? The Leader should ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Harney, to come to the House to debate the role of the consumer. This is not only in the context of price controls, as the Tánaiste seems to believe it is entirely up to the consumer to ensure there are price controls, but also in regard to the power of the consumer.

We noted last week the power of consumers in regard to the Bank of Ireland and the issue of pornography, and the issue has again been raised on national radio in the context of credit card companies. There is a useful point to be made on this, which is that consumers can have a major role to play in regard to credit card companies and their use of technology, to ensure credit cards are not used to disseminate pornography. It would be useful for the Tánaiste to come to the House to debate the issue.