Feargal Quinn (Independent)

I had not intended to contribute until I heard Senator Regan referring to the new court buildings where the witness is able to enter the court without being seen. My attention was drawn to a letter in the paper the other day, which referred to the family of the deceased having to battle their way through cameras every day to get into the courtroom. If we are going to protect those who attend courts, I should much prefer more attention be given to those who are going through a traumatic period, such as the family of a deceased person.

On another point, with all the talk about water meters, what about energy meters, so that people may keep track of the energy they use? We have electricity meters, of course, but a new smart meter has been introduced in Italy, not just for electricity but all energy usage. It was announced this week that Spain is going to install 13 million such meters. Apparently, the effect of having meters such as these is that the user can see what he or she is using or saving and can estimate consumption. There is a saving of the order of 5% in the amounts of various energy being used in each home, apparently. It would be worth the Leader's while to draw this to the attention of the Minister responsible, because it would be a worthwhile initiative.