Donie Cassidy (Fianna Fail)

I will ask the Oireachtas Library to circulate a copy of the Doherty report to show Members the conclusions it reached. We discussed the report in the House previously but nothing has happened with the silt at the bottom of the River Shannon. Some colleagues in the House probably know more about this problem than me but there is a report available for our consideration and I will ensure it is circulated to Members.

Senator Prendergast complimented the HSE on its work yesterday. I share her sentiments.

Senators O'Toole and Ó Domhnaill asked about the Student Support Bill and the timeframe for dealing with it. I will respond to their queries in the House tomorrow morning.

Senator John Paul Phelan called for a debate on school transport. I have already given a commitment to the House that the debate will take place and the Minister has agreed to attend. Legislation is given precedence in the House but we will certainly discuss school transport before Christmas, if possible.

Turning to the matter of cross-Border trading, Senator Ó Domhnaill outlined the challenges facing the retail sector in the northern part of our country thanks to sterling issue, over which we have no control. As he stated concerning VAT, our budget will come after the British budget, but this is a question of one word, that is, "competitiveness". This will be the greatest challenge to face the country in the coming years. We must be more competitive.