Déirdre de Búrca (Green Party)

I participated in the Dublin Pride parade in Dublin on Saturday. It was a very enjoyable experience and very good humoured, but there were several references to the hope that the civil partnership Bill would be introduced as soon as possible.

Members had a good debate in recent months on the Civil Partnership Bill and there seemed to be consensus around the House on the importance of introducing this legislation, which forms part of the programme for Government. I ask the Leader of the House to provide an update to Members on the status of the legislation's preparation and when they can expect to see it brought before the Houses of the Oireachtas.

The other issue I wish to mention is the World Trade Organisation negotiations, which are continuing, and the issue of agriculture. While there was much discussion on this issue during the run-up to the recent referendum, the World Trade Organisation negotiations continue. This morning I noted reports in the national media that the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Deputy Brendan Smith, has made it clear that neither he nor the Irish Government is happy with the implications for agriculture of some of the recent positions taken in those negotiations. I wish to emphasise that as a country that had and still has a strong agricultural base, we must be proactive at a European level in highlighting the vulnerability of the agricultural sector as the issue of food production and food security move to the top of the agenda.

Together with the looming energy crisis, the issue of food security will be immediate and the European Union must ensure it retains its capacity to produce its own food. One must examine the world trade system and must take issue that food is treated within it in the same manner as a manufactured product, that is, simply as another commodity for trading. I ask the Leader of the House, to whom the same request has been made in recent weeks, to invite the Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to the House to address the issue of the ongoing negotiations, their future impact on the agricultural sector and the position Ireland is taking at an EU level to try to protect our capacity for food production in future.