Maurice Cummins (Fine Gael)

Today the OECD reported that literacy level in Irish schools has fallen dramatically in recent years. The country has gone from fifth to 17th in the rankings. There is a need for the Minister for Education and Skills to evaluate this as a matter of urgency and to come into the House to explain the action she intends to take to address this alarming development.

Regarding "Prime Time Investigates", it is appalling that the ordinary, decent people involved who want to live their lives in comfort find themselves in the situation shown in the programme, but we have such anti-social behaviour in many estates throughout the country. My understanding is that local authorities cannot act because they are waiting for court cases to be heard before taking action. While we definitely need reform of the political system, we also need reform of the courts system. These issues should be speeded up and there should be complete reform of the court service to expedite matters of national interest. These matters are also of interest to ordinary decent people trying to live their lives in their homes.