Derek McDowell (Labour)

I support the request made by Senator Brian Hayes regarding the Minister of State at the Department of Finance, Deputy Parlon. His remarks yesterday were disturbing. The Taoiseach and the Minister of State have made much of their claim that no civil servants will be made compulsorily redundant as a result of decentralisation but it is becoming increasingly clear from the bullying and threatening tone of the Minister of State that this reassurance does not count for much. They may not receive their P45s but many civil servants who work in technical or specialist grades run the risk of being given meaningless jobs or no job at all if they do not do the Government's bidding on this matter. There is scope for a debate and a question and answer session with the Minister of State would be useful.

Postal services have been debated in the House previously but it would be useful to do so again. There is a perception that the reduction in postal services and the closure of post offices is an exclusively rural phenomenon. However, the post office in Coolock in my area of Dublin is under threat. This follows the closure of post offices in Donnycarney, Clontarf and Marino in my constituency. It is striking that these closures are not part of a planned programme but are opportunistic in that An Post closes post offices following the retirement of a postmaster or postmistress. I ask for a further debate not only on the closure of post offices, but also on the availability of postal services generally.