Rónán Mullen (Independent)

This takes away the best argument for the relevance of the Seanad to our national life. I would have no difficulty in the Seanad meeting for a couple of extra weeks to allow us to consider properly legislation that is put before us, in particular legislation in respect of criminal justice which impacts on people's civil rights, while attempting to respond to the very justified concerns of citizens about violence, gun crime and so on in our society. We do no service to the people when, in response to the anxiety we all feel about gun crime, we introduce hardline legislation to give the illusion we are being tough on crime when what is proposed does not significantly address the problem, as is the case with some of the measures on handguns, and I will be tabling amendments to them. We must do better than that.

The Leader is a consummate diplomat. There are two definitions of the word "diplomat". The American version defines a diplomat as someone who says "nice doggy" until he can find a rock, and the other version defines a diplomat as someone who tells a person to go to Hell in such a way that he looks forward to the trip. I am always taken by the Leader's response when he is asked for a debate on a particular topic. He says he has no problem arranging it. Last week I asked for a debate on the need to insert a section on end-of-life care into the corporate service plan of the HSE. The Irish Hospice Foundation is doing great work around quality standards for hospice-friendly hospitals for end-of-life care, which has been developed with the support of the Health Information and Quality Authority. There is also a good national audit of end-of-life care in hospitals in the light of the hospice-friendly hospital standards. Unless we get a section on end-of-life care into the corporate service plan of the HSE, however, it will be impossible to realise the goals that are necessary if we are to have hospital care appropriate to those in end-of-life situations. We must hear from the Minister for Health and Children that she wants a section on end-of-life care in the corporate service plan of the HSE. I ask the Leader, who is a very accommodating gentleman, to give the House a commitment that we will hear from the Minister on this important subject and to give a date for such a debate in the House.

There was some confusion last month when Senators Bacik, O'Toole and I were talking about various surveys of the wishes of parents on the ownership and management of schools. We were quoting from different surveys but I assure the House that the latest survey published by Red C commissioned by the Iona Institute affirms yet again that three quarters of the public support the right of parents to send their children to a variety of publicly funded schools, including church-run schools, so there has been no change in public opinion on the matter.