Fergal Browne (Fine Gael)

Given the Acting Leader's experience of agriculture, will he press the Minister for Agriculture and Food to put pressure on Greencore to drop its case against the beet growers? I note the company has resolved its difficulties with the former workers, in particular in Mallow, which is welcome. It is time to take this matter a step further. The beet growers are due to receive compensation in June this year but, through no fault of their own, will not receive any because of the pending court case. The Acting Leader knows far more about this area than I, so I ask him to use his experience to put pressure on the Government in this area.

I agree with previous speakers with regard to the pupil-teacher ratio. I could never understand why a school which had a walking principal who did not teach was considered as part of the equation, given that it distorts the figures. We need to get real. I agree with the Senator who stated that to base class numbers on the figures for the previous September is nonsense. We need to examine the pupil-teacher ratio and not include walking principals as their inclusion distorts the figures.

Reference was made to the Department of Education and Science sending letters. Will the Minister for Health and Children come to the House to update us on the progress in the case of those taking actions against the State who could not get a public bed in a nursing home? I understand there has been some movement on this issue and that the State has settled one case with a person who, through no fault of that person, ended up in a private nursing home. If so, this has huge implications in terms of cost for the State. Perhaps the Minister for Health and Children could come to the House before it rises to indicate whether this is the case.