Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael)

It would be in order and timely if the Leader again conveyed our very best wishes to Cardinal Seán Brady, who is making his return from Rome today. He is to arrive in Dublin and will later be escorted by the PSNI from the Border. It is an historic day for Ireland and the Cardinal personally. It merits repeating that he is an exceptional pastor and a great scholar, and he is absolutely and very visibly a man of God. We are tremendously proud of him in County Cavan and Senators Wilson and Brady will testify to this. We have discussed it previously. I ask the Leader again to wish Cardinal Brady well on our behalf.

I congratulate Senator Hannigan on his prescience in raising the matter I intended to raise, although some of the points made merit repeating. The latest European Commission figures suggest that Ireland looks set to overshoot its Kyoto Agreement commitment by almost 100% and that CO2 emissions will be close to twice the amount they should be at the requisite time. A UN report calls for cuts in CO2 emissions to limit global warming to below 2° Celsius and for more funds to help developing countries adopt to climate change. This is also the view of the stop climate change lobby group and many other interested parties.

We propose to spend considerable sums of money purchasing carbon credits. However, I would welcome two initiatives from this Government. Senator Hannigan mentioned funding to increase awareness among the people, which is important. I would also welcome building regulations.

This Government has essentially failed to make any real inroads into dealing with carbon emissions and the threat of climate change. Radical steps are necessary and we should be much more proactive. The recent reports are disturbing. Will the Leader raise this with the relevant Minister?

Will the Leader ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he has the results on the investigation I sought on the discriminatory means test in regard to non-contributory pensions?