Jim Walsh (Fianna Fail)

There was considerable traffic chaos yesterday morning because of one accident. I agree with what Senator Alex White said, that contingency plans need to be ready to be put in place to avoid that type of chaos. I do not know whether it is the responsibility of the Dublin Transport Authority or whoever else but we should ensure some mechanism is in place to deal with these situations rather than face what happened yesterday.

Senator Alex White inquired how we should measure economic success. There are those who say that perhaps it should be by means of GDP. Others disagree and say that GNP is a better mechanism. Others would argue that our unemployment rate of 4.6%, which is half that of France and of Germany, is another good measure. Could I proffer to Senator White another one, the significant inflation in legal fees which, I presume, is a reflection of the economic success of those who are willing to pay them?