Brendan Ryan (Labour)

Ní bhím ar aon-aigne leis an Seanadóir O'Toole faoi cheist na Gaeilge ó am go ham ach aontaím in iomlán leis an méid a dúirt sé. Tá daoine áirithe ag smaoineamh conas is féidir daoine a chur i gcoinne na Gaeilge. Déanann siad rialacha ar nós gach cáipéis a aistriú go Gaeilge, Gaeilge nach dtuigfeadh duine ón Ghaeltacht. Bíonn téarmaí iontu nach n-úsáidtear in aon Ghaeltacht agus nach dtuigfeadh duine ar bith ansin. Bhí seo mar raic idir mé féin agus an tAire anseo uair amháin mar chuir sé amach scríbhinni nGaeilge amháin ina raibh focail nach dtuigfeadh duine ar bith sa Ghaeltacht ach amháin na saineolaithe taobh istigh den Rialtas.

Tá sé in am go n-úsáidfear na hacmhainní atá againn rudaí dearfa a dhéanamh. Chuaigh duine de mo chlann chuig meánscoil lán-Ghaelach ach go rialta bhí na téacsleabhair as Béarla agus bhí foclóir Ghaeilge curtha le chéile ag an scoil le cabhrú leis na mic léinn. Tá sé in am go mbeadh gach téacs agus ábhar sna scoileanna ar fáil i ndáiríre as Gaeilge.

I am sure many Members heard an issue discussed on the radio this morning. Had we had six months notice of the tsunami, I know the world believes it would have reacted. We have been given notice of the potential for an enormous tragedy occurring in Kenya, Somalia andEthiopia because of unparalleled drought. There are no human failings here, this is a natural tragedy. To date the world has contributed 10% of what has been promised.

This is not an issue on which I would make any criticism of the Government but I would like the Minister of State with responsibility for overseas development to come into the House, update us on the difference between the promises made and the reality of what has been delivered by many parts of the international community on issues such as this, and give us an outline of how the Government might hope to persuade or shame the international community into dealing with issues such as this. It is an issue on which this country has enormous moral credibility and it is, therefore, an issue on which we could, and I believe would wish to, give leadership. However, it will be an enormous moral scandal if thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of people are threatened with death from starvation and drought in a part of the world with which we are familiar and have had long historic links simply because the rest of the world chooses to ignore it. It is an evolving tragedy to which we must and can respond.

I am reluctant to draw the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government on us yet again but I would like to have a debate on the Indecon report on the funding of local government. Many Members present more so than myself are acutely aware of the needs, priorities and sensitivities of local councillors. I would love to get an answer to why it is that, on the one hand, the Government is prepared to force old age pensioners to pay service charges for privatised refuse services because they cannot get any kind of waiver and, on the other hand, is prepared to say that the owners of holiday homes, by definition the well-off in our country, will not have to pay anything for the water and sewerage services which are provided for many of these houses. It seems yet again that we have a country which is biased towards the rich and the already well-off and against the poor. There is no argument against the principle of imposing service charges on holiday homes other than a desire to protect the well-off people from paying for what they get out of society.