Joe O'Toole (Independent)

I could not agree more with Senator Brian Hayes. My colleague, Senator Norris, last week highlighted the importance of this issue. The House has previously agreed to a debate. I ask that the point put forward by Senator Norris, and the motion that has now gone forward in his name, be accepted by the House. It should be accepted not just with a free vote but without a vote at all. Senator Norris will expand on this point when he speaks.

I previously supported the proposal from Senator Hayes that gardaí from non-national communities be allowed citizenship. It is a good idea. It may be useful to have a general debate on that proposal and the Garda reserve force. The Deputy Leader might also confirm that the Government, in supporting the idea of giving non-nationals citizenship, has dismissed the recent daft notion from Aire na Gaeltachta that foreign national applicants to the Garda would be required to spend three months in the Gaeltacht and pass an Irish examination before their appointment. We should expose this type of compulsion and nonsense, which is choking the Irish language, and address it properly.

It would be good to provide for gardaí in the force — be they national or non-national — the idea of a support for them to go to the Gaeltacht, learn about ways there and the language, not as a condition or a matter of compulsion, but as an action that would expand their involvement with Ireland. All of us would support such an idea.

I would like a debate on what we mean by the notion of free speech in a democracy. This was raised here in a recent debate, which related to cartoons. We knew where we stood on that issue, although there were some doubts about the cartoons themselves. The recent imprisonment of a fascist Nazi in Austria raises concern. If somebody raises issues of incitement to hatred or takes similar action, it is clear how the law should act. If people are simply speaking stupidly, they should be sent to a place other than a prison. Such people should be dealt with in that way.