Joe O'Toole (Independent)

I could not agree more with Senator Fitzgerald's final comments. We have all received telephone calls from schools. This morning I spoke to a representative from a school in Kilrush who was in tears about how the school would deal with a child at the end of a peninsula. The school cannot see how a child who is very seriously disadvantaged can be helped without these classes. We will come back to that in the debate.

In recent days there has been a major debate about the former Anglo Irish Bank chairman, Mr. Seán FitzPatrick, not appearing before the Oireachtas committee. We had better discuss this and what is happening. There is a view that the regulation sub-committee of Leinster House should be some sort of star chamber for show trials. When the Committees of the Houses of the Oireachtas (Compellability, Privileges and Immunities of Witnesses) Act 1997 was going through the House, former Senators Brian Hayes and Derek McDowell and I said we were rushing it through and that it would be full of flaws. That related to the amendment to the Bill. Section 12 clearly states, "A statement or admission made ... shall not be admissible as evidence against the person in any criminal proceedings". If I were in danger of criminal proceedings I would be rushing in here to give evidence so it could not be used as evidence against me in the courts.