Joe O'Toole (Independent)

The initial reaction from a group of people I was with when I heard the news about the Ryder Cup not being transmitted free-to-air was that this would be a great boon for the vintners industry and the publicans of Ireland. In terms of the discussions we have had here on the control of drink and alcohol consumption, this is a boost to alcohol consumption. It is an offshoot of this matter and however it is dealt with we should be aware of this issue even if it costs us money to do it.

I wish to raise an issue which was in the news some weeks ago and which I have researched somewhat in the meantime, namely, the lack of screening for newborn babies for hearing disabilities. Currently we carry out what is called a distraction test to assess children's hearing when they are about one year old. A nurse clicks his or her fingers and observes if a child reacts. All this identifies is children who are profoundly deaf.

There is a simple and cheap test that involves putting a probe in a day-old baby's ear for a couple of seconds. This immediately picks up any difficulties which can be followed by a simple treatment of brain stimulation which ensures, for instance, that a child beginning school has almost full language capacity. This is a significant improvement and I ask that we would consider this option. This could avoid a significant amount of hardship on families. It is one of the few measures in the health area which is very inexpensive and it could be provided to every maternity hospital in the country for approximately €3 million or €4 million a year, which is peanuts in terms of the cost of the health budget. The returns would give new life to families and children to protect their children. It is not just a matter of the problem being identified but the treatment being provided to ensure that a child develops properly. The Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children should come to the House to deal with this issue.