Mark Dearey (Green Party)

The Taoiseach continues to work on the concept. There are many voices among our partners in Government who see merit in the idea, but I see no indication from the Opposition parties that they are willing to take the offer seriously or that they understand the serious situation in which the country finds itself right now.

On behalf of the Green Party, I commend the Garda Síochána for its discovery of ready to use bomb making material at Togher woods yesterday. It was very significant. I wish the Garda well in its continued work to stifle this threat. There are people in our towns who are using the current economic crisis as a cynical recruitment tool to draw young people back into ways we thought we had left behind. I saw this with my classmates and I have seen it since. People were led down the path to the supposed glory of an illegal army. It is horrendous on families and on individuals, and I think we need to maintain our vigilance and our efforts in this regard.