Brian Hayes (Fine Gael)

I welcome the fact that national Parliaments will have to ratify No. 22 rather than it being left to the European Union institutions, whether the Commission or Council. Does this measure come within the remit of the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform or another Department? I presume it is a justice issue. We welcome the fact we are to debate it, although I did not know this until I heard it on the Order of Business.

When the Government first outlined its proposal to introduce the special savings investment accounts, there were two objectives in mind. The first was to take money out of the economy thereby helping some inflationary problems emerging at the time while the second was to encourage a culture of savings in Irish society. I have now discovered the Department of Education and Science will tax low income families and refuse them third level maintenance grants on the back of those families having special savings investment accounts.

I would like the Minister for Education and Science to come to the House this week, if at all possible, to explain why the Government will penalise low income families in this way. This was not part of the terms and conditions of the special savings investment accounts. There was no mention of this when hundreds of thousands of people signed up to this scheme. The very people we need to support will be taxed. That is unacceptable. I would like the Minister to come to the House this week to explain why she is introducing this and putting pressures on local authorities to demand that when SSIAs mature, these people will not be able to obtain third level maintenance grants. They might also lose their medical cards or other social welfare payments. This is unacceptable and we need some accountability on this issue.

I and my party fully support the discussions in Scotland this week between our Government, the British and all the Northern Ireland parties. We wish those discussions well. There have been many false dawns in Northern Ireland over the past ten or 15 years and I hope that when a decision is taken, it will be a bright new future for the people of Northern Ireland. If ever there was a place which not only needed devolved government but a shared government to deal with the various identifies which exist, it is Northern Ireland. I wish the talks well and ask if the Leader can arrange statements next week following the conclusion of the talks.