Dominic Hannigan (Labour)

Yesterday saw the start of the oral appeal held by An Bord Pleanála against the proposed meat and bone incinerator at Nobber, County Meath. Another incinerator is being foisted on the people of the north east when they have clearly stated their objection to the whole concept of incineration. I ask the Leader to clarify with the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government exactly what his policy is regarding the incineration of bonemeal. It seems that he personally has one policy, while his Department has a completely different policy.

Barrier free tolling has been in operation for a month on the M50 and it is clear the system the NRA has put in place is not up to the job. People throughout the country are being levied for fines because of misreading of tags and number plates or simply because of human error. The newspapers report that between 200 and 10,000 people each day are being wrongly fined. Could we put in place a system whereby people who are wrongly fined by the NRA get compensation of €50? People have to fight to clear their names. As anybody in this House knows, dealing with a body like the NRA takes up a lot of time. These are hard-pressed commuters going to and from work and they really do not have time to spend trying to right wrongs because of the NRA'S ineptitude. I ask the Leader to make that point to the Minister.

I compliment the port of Cork on the €8 million investment in Cobh Harbour. As the port's commercial manager, Captain Michael McCarthy, said yesterday, it has allowed the port to take larger ships. In July they had one of the largest cruise ships in the world and yesterday they saw the final voyage of the QE2. This is proof that investment in tourism will lead to additional jobs and help to offset the negative impact of closure of local factories. I ask the Leader to impress on the Minister the importance of tourism receiving the investment it needs.