Niall Ó Brolcháin (Green Party)

I endorse those comments of Senator Regan. I also refer to the comments of Senator Hanafin with regard to same-sex marriage. After the civil partnership Bill has gone through the Houses, it would be wholly appropriate to have a referendum on same-sex marriage.

With regard to the comments made by Senators Keaveney and Glynn, I ask for a debate on levels of violence and intimidation within politics. This is not new in this country or in any country but I note increasing levels. Along with the Leader I saw the attempted break-in to Dáil Éireann last Tuesday. Missiles were thrown over the wall and the gardaí did very well to hold out the protesters on that occasion. We should have a debate because we have to stand up to intimidation. I have made the point before that it is totally incompatible to have an anti-war stance while at the same time using methods of violence and intimidation to get one's point across.

I agree completely with Senators Mooney, Dearey and others about the public transport issue and the issue of compellability of witnesses in committees. It is time to get a lot tougher with regard to committees. Senators should unite on this issue. We should be much stronger with regard to compellability of witnesses. I detect there is probably an all-party mood to achieve this and I call on the Cabinet to look carefully at the issue.

A number of Senators called for a debate on energy and I welcome such an important debate. Since this Government came to power, renewable energy has increased from 7% to 15% of electricity and significant progress is being made in that area. The 2020 vision is to have 40% renewable energy and the 2050 vision is to have 100% renewable energy. This Government is making great inroads. A continuing debate on energy is important because it is one of the key issues facing both our society and our economy.