David Norris (Independent)

I would like to raise a couple of other positive issues. Last week I went to the BT Young Scientist and Technology Exhibition. If one ever needs to be lifted out of a feeling of despair, one need only meet the wonderful young people involved. This year saw the largest ever number of entrants, who entered 1,735 projects. Three hundred and forty schools, from all 32 counties, were involved. I spoke to a number of the entrants, one of whom was a fellow who had created an application for a mobile telephone such that it could be turned into a defibrillator so sudden adult death syndrome could be addressed immediately by a very large number of people. I asked the student whether he was applying for a patent and he said he was. Another student had just obtained a patent. Last year's winners, John O'Callaghan and Liam McCarthy, from Kinsale community school, have a patent for a project on the development of a convenient, simple test for somatic cell count, which is important to milk production. Well done to these fantastic, enterprising, creative, imaginative and gifted young people.

Will the Leader take up an issue that I am sure must be close to his heart, that is, the closure of Fitzgibbon Street police station? I wrote to the superintendent and asked about this. The station is supposed to be closed for refurbishment. I asked two questions, namely, when the refurbishment programme would start and when the station would reopen, and the answer I got stated: "I do not have this information because it is not within my knowledge at present as a district officer." The plan is to refurbish Fitzgibbon Street station but I have been given no information in regard to when this work will commence. The station, which is in the inner city, is being abandoned and we must do something about it.