Dan Boyle (Green Party)

The Senator also pointed out the proposals on community development projects. It also is something for which I have sympathy. As someone with a community background, I believe that while there is scope for saving in these areas, the current proposals, which are being introduced over the period of a year to see how they might be refined and to allow an opportunity for debate as to how the eventual decisions will pan out, look at the wrong end of the pipe. They look in the local communities themselves where the valuable work is being done by development projects and where there is a sense of enablement and empowerment. They do not look at the other of the pipe where often there is an unnecessary and costly bureaucracy, which is being left in place and is not being tackled to achieve effective use of public money. A debate along those lines would be useful in this House.

Senator Regan also asked a question on NAMA and the role of the European Commission. This House will be kept fully informed of how the European Commission deals with the proposals. He also referred to yesterday's meeting of the Joint Committee on Finance and the Public Service, as did Senator Donohoe. I must admit that some of the comments of banking executives showed that lessons are being learned very slowly. This House can never lose sight of the fact that as the banks had to be rescued owing at the very least to incompetence, the people making these submissions to Oireachtas committees need to be a little more honest and forthcoming in how they deal with this ongoing crisis.