Denis O'Donovan (Fianna Fail)

That leads me to a point on planning permission. The area of planning in rural Ireland is another on which I also ask for a debate, although not before the end of this session. I have discovered in the new county development plan that three quarters of my entire electoral area, the Bantry electoral area, which has 16,000 to 18,000 people, covering all of the peninsulas, can never be built on because there are mountains, valleys, etc., yet that entire area has now been regulated as scenic and tourism related making it nigh on impossible for somebody living in a rural area to get planning permission. I am not supporting second homes or holiday homes but I do support cases where a farmer's son or daughter or somebody wants to stay in their home community, get involved in sport and look after their kin. That is becoming impossible and it is all driven by EU regulations. It is time to say "hands off".

I fully support the remarks about the banks, particularly those by Senator Ross who is probably more eminent and capable of making them, and some of whose remarks were veiled. Let us be real here. The leader of the Opposition has rightly called for a debate on the economy, but the banking institutions have a significant role to play. It is not that long ago that some of my children, who are now young adults, got letters asking did they want to borrow more money and within a year or two they are getting letters stating the banks want them to pay back.