Pearse Doherty (Sinn Fein)

While I support calls for a debate, it must an informed debate. Senators must recognise that many members of the public perceive this House to be irrelevant. Seanad reform, for which all of us have argued, has not taken place. The issue is usually the set piece debate on the first day of each new Seanad. The Government needs to take the bull by the horns by reforming the Seanad and eliminating duplication between the Upper House and the Lower House.

Unlike Deputies, Senators are not able to hold Ministers to account and may not table written questions to obtain information. The information required to have an informed debate includes access to the types of figures to which various speakers referred. For example, who are the 5,803 people who work and earn income here for part of the year but do not pay tax in this State? Why can we not ensure such tax exiles pay their taxes here?